IRLF 


JOSEPH  H9DONOUGH 
RARE  BOOKS 

,     ALBANY  -N.Y. 


THE   STORY   OF 
OLD    FORT    LOUDON 


The  officers  expressed  their  earnest  remonstrances. 
(See  page  198.) 


The  Story 


of 


Old   Fort  Loudon 


By 


Charles  Egbert  Craddock 

Author  of  "  In  the  Tennessee  Mountains,"   "  The  Prophet  of  the 
Great  Smoky  Mountains,"  etc.,  etc. 


With  Illustrations  by  Ernest  C.  Peixotto 


New  York 
The  Macmillan   Company 

London  :   Macmillan  &  Co.,  Ltd. 
1899 

All  rights  reserved 


if  . 


I* 


Copyright,  1898, 
By  The  Macmillan  Company. 


Norwood  Press 

J.  S.  Gushing  &  Co.  —  Berwick  &  Smith 
Norwood,  Mass.,  U.S.A. 

/ 


Illustrations 

"The  officers  expressed  their  earnest  remonstrances"   (see 

page  198).          .          <          .          .          ..    Frontispiece 

Facing  page 

"  What  more  wonderful  ?     What  more  fearful  ? "      .          .        16 
"  The  canoe  rocked  in  the  swirls  "          .          .          .          .54 

"And  oh,  the  moment  of  housewifely  pride  !"  .          .      128 

"  Plunging    through    the   gate   and    half  across   the   parade 

ground"     ........      240 

Belinda  and  the  Ensign  on  the  moonlit  rampart  .          .      252 

"The  men  had  been  hastily  formed  into  a  square"    .          .346 
"  He  stared  forward  blankly  at  the  inevitable  prospect"       .      376 


M185113 


The 
Story  of  Old   Fort   Loudon 


CHAPTER   I 

ALONG  the  buffalo  paths,  from  one  salt-lick 
to  another,  a  group  of  pioneers  took  a 
vagrant  way  through  the  dense  cane-brakes. 
Never  a  wheel  had  then  entered  the  deep  forests  of 
this  western  wilderness ;  the  frontiersman  and  the 
packhorse  were  comrades.  Dark,  gloomy,  with 
long,  level  summit-lines,  a  grim  outlier  of  the 
mountain  rariige,  since  known  as  the  Cumberland, 
stretched  from  northeast  to  southwest,  seeming  as 
they  approached  to  interpose  an  insurmountable 
barrier  to  further  progress,  until  suddenly,  as  in  the 
miracle  of  a  dream,  the  craggy  wooded  heights 
showed  a  gap,  cloven  to  the  heart  of  the  steeps, 
opening  out  their  path  as  through  some  splendid 
gateway,  and  promising  deliverance,  a  new  life,  and 
a  new  and  beautiful  land.  For  beyond  the  darkling 
cliffs  on  either  hand  an  illuminated  vista  stretched 
in  every  lengthening  perspective,  with  softly  nestling 


2  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

sheltered  valleys,  and  parallel  lines  of  distant  azure 
mountains,  and  many  a  mile  of  level  woodland  high 
on  an  elevated  plateau,  all  bedight  in  the  lingering 
flare  of  the  yellow,  and  deep  red,  and  sere  brown 
of  late  autumn,  and  all  suffused  with  an  opaline 
haze  and  the  rich,  sweet  languors  of  sunset-tide  on 
an  Indian-summer  day. 

As  that  enchanted  perspective  opened  to  the 
view,  a  sudden  joyous  exclamation  rang  out  on  the 
still  air.  The  next  moment  a  woman,  walking 
beside  one  of  the  packhorses,  clapped  both  hands 
over  her  lips,  and  turning  looked  with  apprehensive 
eyes  at  the  two  men  who  followed  her.  The  one 
in  advance  cast  at  her  a  glance  of  keen  reproach, 
and  then  the  whole  party  paused  and  with  tense 
attention  bent  every  faculty  to  listen. 

Silence  could  hardly  have  been  more  profound. 
The  regular  respiration  of  the  two  horses  suggested 
sound.  But  the  wind  did  not  stir ;  the  growths  of 
the  limitless  cane-brakes  in  the  valley  showed  no 
slight  quiver  in  the  delicately  poised  fibers  of  their 
brown  feathery  crests ;  the  haze,  all  shot  through 
with  glimmers  of  gold  in  its  gauzy  gray  folds, 
rested  on  the  mute  woods ;  the  suave  sky  hung 
above  the  purple  western  heights  without  a  breath. 
No  suggestion  of  motion  in  all  the  landscape,  save 
the  sudden  melting  away  of  a  flake  of  vermilion  cloud 
in  a  faintly  green  expanse  of  the  crystal  heavens. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  3 

The  elder  man  dropped  his  hand,  that  had  been 
raised  to  impose  silence,  and  lifted  his  eyes  from 
the  ground.  "  I  cannot  be  rid  of  the  idea  that  we 
are  followed,"  he  said.  "  But  I  hear  nothing." 

Although  the  eldest  of  the  group,  he  was  still 
young, —  twenty-five,  perhaps.  He  was  tall,  strong, 
alert,  with  a  narrow,  long  face ;  dark,  slow  eyes,  that 
had  a  serious,  steadfast  expression  ;  dark  brown  hair, 
braided  in  the  queue  often  discarded  by  the  hunters 
of  this  day.  A  certain  staid,  cautious  sobriety  of 
manner  hardly  assorted  with  the  rough-and-ready 
import  of  his  garb  and  the  adventurous  place  and 
time.  Both  he  and  the  younger  man,  who  was 
in  fact  a  mere  boy  not  yet  seventeen,  but  tall, 
muscular,  sinewy,  —  stringy,  one  might  say,  —  of 
build,  were  dressed  alike  in  loose  hunting-shirts 
of  buckskin,  heavily  fringed,  less  for  the  sake  of 
ornament  than  the  handiness  of  a  selection  of 
thongs  always  ready  to  be  detached  for  use ;  for 
the  same  reason  the  deerskin  leggings,  reaching 
to  the  thighs  over  the  knee-breeches  and  long 
stockings  of  that  day,  were  also  furnished  with 
these  substantial  fringes ;  shot-pouch  and  powder- 
horn  were  suspended  from  a  leather  belt,  and  on 
the  other  side  a  knife-hilt  gleamed  close  to  the 
body.  Both  wore  coonskin  caps,  but  that  of  the 
younger  preserved  the  tail  to  hang  down  like  a  plume 
among  his  glossy  brown  tangles  of  curls,  which,  but 


4  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

for  a  bit  of  restraining  ribbon,  resisted  all  semblance 
to  the  gentility  of  a  queue.  The  boy  was  like  his 
brother  in  the  clear  complexion  and  the  color  of  the 
dark  eyes  and  hair,  but  the  expression  of  his  eyes 
was  wild,  alert,  and  although  fired  with  the  earnest 
ardor  of  first  youth,  they  had  certain  roguish  inti 
mations,  subdued  now  since  they  were  still  and 
seriously  expectant,  but  which  gave  token  how 
acceptably  he  could  play  that  cherished  role,  to  a 
secluded  and  isolated  fireside,  of  family  buffoon, 
and  make  gay  mirth  for  the  applause  of  the  chim 
ney-corner.  The  brothers  were  both  shod  with 
deerskin  buskins,  but  the  other  two  of  the  party 
wore  the  shoe  of  civilization,  —  one  a  brodequin, 
that  despite  its  rough  and  substantial  materials 
could  but  reflect  a  grace  from  the  dainty  foot  within 
it ;  the  other  showed  the  stubby  shapes  deemed 
meet  for  the  early  stages  of  the  long  tramp  of  life. 
The  little  girl's  shoes  were  hardly  more  in  evidence 
than  the  mother's,  for  the  skirts  of  children  were 
worn  long,  and  only  now  and  then  was  betrayed  a 
facetious  skip  of  some  active  toes  in  the  blunt  foot 
gear.  Their  dresses  were  of  the  same  material,  a 
heavy  gray  serge,  which  fact  gave  the  little  one 
much  satisfaction,  for  she  considered  that  it  made 
them  resemble  the  cow  and  calf —  both  great  person 
ages  in  her  mind.  But  she  flattered  herself;  her 
aspect  in  the  straight,  short  bodice  that  enclosed  her 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  5 

stout  little  rotund  figure,  and  the  quaint  white  mob- 
cap  that  encircled  her  chubby,  roseate  face,  all  smiles, 
and  indeterminate  nose,  and  expanded,  laughing, 
red  mouth,  and  white,  glittering,  irregular  teeth, 
had  little  in  common  with  the  mother  whom  she 
admired  and  imitated,  and  but  for  the  remnant  of 
the  elder's  stuff  gown,  of  which  her  own  was 
fashioned,  the  comparison  with  the  cow  and  calf 
would  have  failed  altogether.  She  was  not  even  a 
good  imitator  of  the  maternal  methods.  Of  course 
the  days  of  her  own  infancy,  recent  though  they 
were,  had  long  been  lost  to  her  limited  memory,  and 
a  token  of  the  length  of  time  that  they  had  dwelt  in 
the  wilderness,  and  the  impressions  her  juvenile  fac 
ulties  had  received  therefrom  might  have  been  given 
by  the  fact  that  her  doll  was  reared  after  pappoose 
fashion ;  on  her  back  was  slung  a  basket  in  the 
manner  of  the  peripatetic  cradle  of  the  Indian 
women,  and  from  this  protruded  the  head  and  the 
widely  open  eyes  of  a  cat  slightly  past  kittenhood, 
that  was  adapting  its  preferences  to  the  conditions 
of  the  journey  with  a  discretion  which  might  argue 
an  extension  of  the  powers  of  instinct  in  pioneer 
animals,  —  a  claim  which  has  often  been  advanced. 
The  cat  evidently  realized  the  fact  that  it  was  a 
domesticated  creature,  that  naught  was  possible  for 
it  in  these  strange  woods  but  speedy  destruction 
by  savage  beast  or  man,  and  that  decorous  sub- 


6  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

mission  became  a  cat  promoted  to  the  estate  of  a 
juvenile  settler's  baby.  The  cat  was  as  silent  and 
as  motionless  during  the  halt  as  the  rest  of  the 
party,  looking  out  watchfully  over  the  shoulder  of 
the  little  three-year-old,  who,  with  perfect  and  mute 
trust,  and  great,  serene  eyes,  gazed  up  at  the  face  of 
her  father,  nothing  doubting  his  infinite  puissance 
and  willingness  to  take  care  of  her.  When  he  spoke 
and  the  tension  was  over,  she  began  to  skip  once 
more,  the  jostled  cat  putting  out  her  claws  to  hold 
to  the  wicker-work  of  her  basket;  the  two  had 
ridden  most  of  the  day  on  one  of  the  packhorses, 
their  trifling  weight  adding  but  little  to  the  burden 
of  the  scanty  store  of  clothing  and  bedding,  the 
cooking  and  farming  utensils,  the  precious  frying- 
pan  and  skillet,  the  invaluable  axe,  hand-saw,  auger, 
and  hoe, —  the  lares  and  penates  of  the  pioneer. 
There  were  some  surveying-instruments,  too,  and 
in  the  momentary  relaxation  of  suspense  the  elder 
of  the  brothers  consulted  a  compass,  as  he  had  done 
more  than  once  that  day. 

"  I  thought  I  heard  something,"  said  the  boy, 
shouldering  his  rifle  and  turning  westward,  "  but  I 
couldn't  say  what." 

"  Ah,  quelle  barbarie ! "  exclaimed  the  woman, 
with  a  sigh,  half  petulance,  half  relief. 

She  seemed  less  the  kind  of  timber  that  was  to 
build  up  the  great  structure  of  western  civilization 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  7 

than  did  the  others,  —  all  unfitted  for  its  hardships 
and  privation  and  labor.  Her  gray  serge  gown  was 
worn  with  a  sort  of  subtle  elegance  hardly  dis 
counted  by  the  plainness  of  the  material  and  make. 
The  long,  pointed  waist  accented  the  slender  grace 
of  her  figure ;  the  skirt  had  folds  clustered  on  the 
hips  that  gave  a  sort  of  fullness  to  the  drapery  and 
suggested  the  charm  of  elaborate  costume.  She 
wore  a  hood  on  her  head,  —  a  large  calash,  which 
had  a  curtain  that  hung  about  her  shoulders.  This 
was  a  dark  red,  of  the  tint  called  Indian  red,  and  as 
she  pushed  it  back  and  turned  her  face,  realizing 
that  the  interval  of  watching  was  over,  the  fairness 
of  her  complexion,  the  beauty  of  her  dark,  liquid 
eyes,  the  suggestion  of  her  well-ordered,  rich  brown 
hair  above  her  high  forehead,  almost  regal  in  its 
noble  cast,  the  perfection  of  the  details  of  her  simple 
dress,  all  seemed  infinitely  incongruous  with  her 
estate  as  a  poor  settler's  wife,  and  the  fact  that  since 
dawn  and  for  days  past  she  had,  with  the  little 
all  she  possessed,  fled  from  the  pursuit  of  savage 
Indians.  She  returned  with  a  severe  glance  the 
laughing  grimace  of  the  boy,  with  which,  despite  his 
own  fear  but  a  moment  ago,  he  had,  in  the  mobility 
of  the  moods  of  youth,  decorated  his  countenance. 

"If  it  were  not  for  you,  Hamish,"  she  said  to 
him,  "  I  should  not  be  so  terrified.  I  have  seen 
Indians  many  a  time,  —  yes,  —  and  when  they  were 


8  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

on  the  war-path,  too.  But  to  add  to  their  fury  by 
an  act  of  defiance  on  our  part!  It  is  fatal  —  they 
have  only  to  overtake  us." 

"  What  was  I  to  do,  Odalie  ? "  said  Hamish 
MacLeod,  suddenly  grave,  and  excitedly  justifying 
himself.  "There  was  that  red  Injun,  as  still  as  a 
stump.  I  thought  he  was  a  stump  — it  was  nearly 
dark.  And  I  heard  the  wild  turkey  gobbling, — 
you  heard  it  yourself,  you  sent  me  out  to  get  it  for 
supper,  —  you  said  that  one  more  meal  on  buffalo 
meat  would  be  the  death  of  you,  —  and  it  was 
nearly  dark,  —  and — gobble  —  gobble  —  gobble  — 
so  appetizing.  I  can  hear  it  yet." 

With  an  expression  of  terror  she  caught  suddenly 
at  his  hand  as  he  walked  beside  her,  but  he  petu 
lantly  pulled  away. 

"  I  mean  in  my  mind,,  Odalie,  —  I  hear  it  now  in 
my  mind.  And  all  of  a  sudden  it  came  to  me  that 
it  was  that  stump  up  on  the  slope  that  was  gob 
bling  so  cheerful,  and  gobbling  me  along  into  gun 
shot.1  And  just  then  I  was  in  rifle  range,  and  I 
fired  at  the  same  minute  that  the  stump  fired,  or 
the  turkey,  whichever  you  choose  to  call  him  — 
What  is  the  reason,  Sandy,  that  Injuns  are  so  apt  to 
load  with  too  little  powder  ?  "  he  broke  off,  speak 
ing  to  his  brother.  "The  turkey  shot  straight  — 
his  ball  dropped  spent  just  at  my  feet/' 

"  Quelle  barbaric!"    exclaimed   Mrs.    MacLeod, 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  9 

catching  his  hand  again  —  this  time  to  give  it  a 
little  squeeze  —  impressed  with  the  imminence  of 
the  boy's  danger  and  their  loss. 

But  Hamish  was  quite  as  independent  of  caresses 
and  approval  as  of  rebuke,  and  he  carelessly  twisted 
his  hand  away  from  his  sister-in-law  as  he  cocked 
his  head  to  one  side  to  hear  the  more  experienced 
hunter's  reply. 

"  Because  their  powder  is  so  precious,  and  scant, 
and  hard  to  come  by,  they  economize  it,"  said 
Alexander  MacLeod,  as  he  trudged  along  behind 
the  packhorses,  guarding  the  rear  of  his  little  party 
with  his  rifle  on  his  shoulder. 

"  The  turkey  would  better  have  economized  his 
meat  this  time,"  said  the  boy,  swinging  round  his 
belt  to  lift  the  lid  of  his  powder-horn  and  pe^p 
gloatingly  in  at  the  reinforced  stores.  "He  was 
economical  with  his  powder,  but  extravagant  with 
his  life  ;  for  that  turkey  will  gobble  no  more." 

He  gobbled  a  brisk  and  agitated  imitation  of  the 
cry  of  the  fowl,  and  then  broke  off  to  exclaim, 
"  Quette  barbarie!  —  eh,  Odalie  ?  " 

He  looked  at  his  sister-in-law  with  a  roguish  eye, 
as  he  travestied  the  tone  and  manner  of  her  favor 
ite  ejaculation,  which  he  was  wont  to  call  the 
"  family  oath."  For  indeed  they  had  all  come  to 
make  use  of  the  phrase,  in  their  varying  accent, 
to  express  their  disaffection  with  the  ordering  of 


io  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

events,  or  the  conduct  of  one  another,  or  the  pro 
voking  mischance  of  inanimate  objects,  —  as  the 
gun's  hanging  fire,  or  the  reluctance  of  a  spark  to 
kindle  from  flint  to  make  their  camp-fire,  or  the 
overturning  of  a  pot  of  buffalo  soup,  or  bear  stew, 
when  the  famished  fugitives  were  ready  to  partake 
in  reality  of  the  feast  which  their  olfactory  nerves 
and  eyes  had  already  begun.  Even  the  little  girl 
would  exclaim,  " Quelle  barbaric!"  when  thorns 
caught  her  skirts  and  held  her  prisoner  as  she 
had  skipped  along  so  low  down  among  the  brambles 
and  dense  high  cane,  that  one  must  needs  wonder 
at  the  smallness  of  Empire,  as  expressed  in  her 
personality  and  funny  cap,  taking  its  westward  way. 
"£)uelle  barbaric!"  too,  when  the  cat's  culture  in 
elegant  manners  required  of  maternal  solicitude  a 
smart  box  on  the  ear.  And  if  the  cat  did  not  say 
"  Quelle  barbarie!  "  with  an  approved  French  accent, 
we  all  know  that  she  thought  it. 

"  So  much  better  for  the  soul's  health  than  swear 
ing,"  Hamish  was  wont  to  say,  when  Odalie  showed 
signs  of  considering  the  phrase  a  bit  of  ridicule  of 
her  and  her  Frenchy  forbears. 

Her  grandfather  had  been  a  Huguenot  refugee, 
driven  out  of  his  country  by  the  religious  persecu 
tion  about  the  time  of  the  Revocation  of  the  Edict 
of  Nantes,  seventy  odd  years  previously.  Her 
father  had  prospered  but  indifferently  in  the  more 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  n 

civilized  section  of  the  New  World,  and  had  died 
early.  There  his  daughter  had  met  her  young 
Scotchman,  who  was  piqued  by  her  dainty  disdain 
of  his  French  accent,  which  MacLeod  had  reck 
lessly  placed  on  exhibition,  and  was  always  seeking 
to  redeem  the  impression,  finally  feeling  that  he 
must  needs  improve  it  by  having  a  perfect  Mentor 
at  hand.  He  had  brought  from  the  land  of  his 
birth,  which  he  had  quitted  in  early  years,  but  few 
distinctive  local  expressions,  yet  a  certain  burr  clung 
to  his  speech,  and  combined  as  incongruously  as 
might  be  with  his  French  accent.  She  evidently 
considered  the  latter  incurable,  intolerable,  and 
always  eyed  him,  when  he  spoke  in  that  language, 
with  ostentatious  wonder  that  such  verbal  atrocities 
could  be,  and  murmured  gently  in  lieu  of  reply  — 
"  Quelle  barbaric  I  "  He  found  his  revenge  in  repeat 
ing  a  similar  slogan,  one  that  had  often  been  as  a  sup 
plement  to  this  more  usual  phrase,  —  "  Par  tons  pour 
la  France  aujourd'bui,  pour  I  'amour  de  Dieu!  "  It  had 
been  urged  by  her  grandmother  in  moments  of  de 
pression,  and  Odalie,  born  and  reared  in  the  royal 
province  of  South  Carolina,  had  always  the  logic  and 
grace  to  wince  at  this  ungrateful  aspiration  to  return 
to  France, — the  dear  France  that  had  been  so  much 
too  hot  to  hold  them.  For  the  family  had  rejoiced 
to  escape  thence  with  their  lives,  even  at  the  for 
feiture  of  all  that  they  possessed. 


12  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

This  jesting  warfare  of  words  had  become  estab 
lished  in  the  MacLeod  household,  and  often  re 
curred,  sometimes  with  a  trifle  of  acrimony.  Little 
they  thought  how  significant  it  was  to  be  and  how  it 
should  serve  them  in  their  future  lives. 

The  sun  was  going  down.  Far,  far  purple  moun 
tains,  that  they  might  never  have  seen  but  for  that 
great  clifty  gateway,  were  bathed  in  the  glory  of  the 
last  red  suffusion  of  the  west ;  the  evening  star  of 
an  unparalleled  whiteness  pulsated  in  the  amber- 
tinted  lucidity  of  the  sky.  The  fragrance  of  the 
autumn  woods  was  more  marked  on  the  dank 
night  air.  One  could  smell  the  rich  mould  along  a 
watercourse  near  at  hand,  the  branch  from  a  spring 
bubbling  up  in  the  solid  rock  hard  by.  Odalie  had 
seated  herself  on  the  horizontal  ledge  at  the  base  of 
one  of  the  crags  and  had  thrown  back  her  hood, 
against  which  her  head  rested.  Her  large  eyes 
were  soft  and  lustrous,  but  pensive  and  weary. 

"  Rest,  Odalie,  while  Hamish  and  I  make  the 
fire,  and  then  you  can  fix  the  things  for  supper/1  her 
husband  admonished  her. 

It  was  the  first  time  that  they  had  halted  that  day, 
and  dinner  had  been  but  the  fragments  of  breakfast 
eaten  while  on  the  march.  There  had  been  a  sud 
den  outbreak  of  the  Cherokee  Indians  which  had 
driven  them  from  the  more  frequented  way  where 
they  feared  pursuit,  —  this,  and  the  fate  of  the  brave 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  13 

who  had  sought  to  lure  Hamish  to  his  death  last 
night  with  the  mimicry  of  the  gobbler,  and  was 
killed  in  consequence  himself.  They  could  not 
judge  whether  he  had  been  alone  or  one  of  a  party ; 
whether  his  body  might  be  discovered  and  his  death 
avenged  by  the  death  or  capture  of  them  all ;  whether 
he  had  been  a  scout,  thrown  out  to  discover  the 
direction  they  took,  and  his  natural  blood-thirstiness 
had  overmastered  his  instructions,  and  he  must 
needs  seek  to  kill  the  boy  before  his  return  with  his 
news. 

With  this  more  recent  fear  that  they  were  fol 
lowed  they  had  not  to-day  dared  to  build  a  fire  lest 
its  smoke  betray  to  the  crafty  observation  of  the 
Indians,  although  at  a  great  distance,  their  presence 
in  this  remote  quarter  of  the  wilderness,  far  even 
from  the  Indian  war-path,  that,  striking  down  the 
valley  between  the  Cumberland  range  and  the 
eastern  mountains,  was  then  not  only  the  road 
that  the  Indians  followed  to  battle,  but  the  highway 
of  traffic  and  travel,  the  only  recognized  and  known 
path  leading  from  the  Cherokee  settlements  south 
of  the  Tennessee  River  through  this  great  unin 
habited  park  or  hunting-ground  to  the  regions  of 
other  Indian  tribes  on  the  Scioto  and  to  Western 
Virginia.  Now,  however,  rest  and  refreshment  were 
necessary  ;  even  more  imperative  was  the  need  of 
a  fire  as  a  protection  to  the  camp  against  the  en- 


14  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

croachments  of  wild  beasts  ;  for  wolves  were  plen 
tiful  and  roamed  the  night-bound  earth,  and  the 
active  panther,  the  great  American  cougar,  was 
wont  to  look  down  from  the  branches  of  over 
hanging  trees.  The  horses  were  not  safe  beyond 
the  flare  of  the  flames,  to  say  nothing  of  wife  and 
child.  Therefore  the  risk  of  attracting  observation 
from  Indians  must  be  run,  especially  since  it  was 
abated  by  the  descending  dusk.  The  little  treach 
erous  smoke  escaping  from  the  forest  to  curl  against 
the  blue  sky  need  not  be  feared  at  night.  The 
darkness  would  hide  all  from  a  distance ;  as  to  foes 
lurking  nearer  at  hand,  why,  if  any  such  there  were, 
then  their  fate  was  already  upon  them.  With  the 
stout  heart  of  the  pioneer,  Alexander  MacLeod 
heaped  the  fagots  upon  the  ground  and  struck  the 
flint  and  steel  together  after  giving  the  officious 
little  Josephine  a  chance  to  try  her  luck  with  the 
tinder.  Soon  the  dry  dead  wood  was  timidly 
ablaze,  while  Hamish  led  the  horses  to  the  water 
and  picketed  them  out. 

Odalie's  eyes  followed  the  boy  with  a  sort  of 
belated  yet  painful  anxiety,  thinking  how  near  he 
had  been  to  parting  with  that  stanch  young  spirit, 
and  what  a  bereavement  would  have  been  the  loss 
of  that  blithe  element  from  their  daily  lives. 

"  Quelle  barbaric  !  '  she  exclaimed  suddenly. 
"  Quelle  bar  bar  ie  I  " 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  15 

Perhaps  her  husband  realized  her  fatigue  and 
depression  and  was  willing  to  put  his  French  accent 
on  parade  for  her  amusement ;  perhaps  it  was  for 
the  sake  of  the  old  flouting  retort ;  he  theatrically 
rejoined  without  looking  up,  "  Partons  four  la 
France  aujourd'bui,  four  V amour  de  Dieu" 

And  Josephine,  taking  the  cat  out  of  its  basket 
and  kissing  its  whiskers  and  the  top  of  its  head,  was 
condoling  with  it  on  its  long  restraint:  — " Quelle 
barbaric,  ma  poupee,  quelle  barbaric,  ma  douce  mi- 
gnonne"  she  poutingly  babbled. 

Alexander  MacLeod  paused  to  listen  to  this 
affectionate  motherly  discourse ;  then  glanced  up  at 
his  wife  with  a  smile,  to  call  her  attention  to  it. 

She  had  not  moved.  She  had  turned  to  stone.  It 
seemed  as  if  she  could  never  move  again.  A  wav 
ing  blotch  of  red  sumach  leaves  in  a  niche  in  the 
dark  wall  of  the  crag  hard  by  had  caught  her  notice. 
A  waving  blotch  of  red  leaves  in  the  autumnal  dusk, 
—  what  more  natural  ? 

What  more  wonderful  ?     What  more  fearful  ? 

There  was  no  wind.  How  could  the  bough 
stir  ?  There  was  no  bough.  The  blotch  of  color 
was  the  red  and  black  of  a  hideous  painted  face  that 
in  the  dusk,  the  treacherous  dusk,  had  approached 
very  near  and  struck  her  dumb  and  turned  her  to 
stone.  It  had  approached  so  near  that  she  could 
see  its  expression  change  as  the  sound  of  the  words 


1 6  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

spoken  about  the  fireside  arose  on  the  air.  Her 
mental  faculties  were  rallying  from  the  torpor  which 
still  paralyzed  her  physical  being ;  she  understood 
the  reason  for  this  facial  change,  and  by  a  mighty 
effort  of  the  will  summoned  all  her  powers  to  avail 
herself  of  it. 

Alexander  MacLeod,  glancing  up  with  a  casual 
laugh  on  his  face,  was  almost  stunned  to  see  a  full- 
armed  and  painted  Cherokee  rise  up  suddenly  from 
among  the  bushes  about  the  foot  of  the  cliff. 
Standing  distinctly  outlined  against  the  softly  tinted 
mountain  landscape,  which  was  opalescent  in  its 
illumined  hues,  faint  and  fading,  and  extending  his 
hand  with  a  motion  of  inquiry  toward  Odalie,  the 
savage  demanded  in  a  lordly  tone,  —  "  Flinch  ? 
Flanzy  ? " 

As  in  a  dream  MacLeod  beheld  her,  nodding 
her  head  in  silent  acquiescence,  —  as  easily  as  she 
might  were  she  humming  a  tune  and  hardly  cared  to 
desist  from  melody  for  words.  She  could  not  speak  ! 

The  Cherokee,  his  face  smeared  with  vermilion, 
with  a  great  white  circle  around  one  eye  and  a  great 
black  circle  around  the  other,  looked  not  ill-pleased, 
yet  baffled  for  a  moment.  "  Me  no  talk  him,"  he 
observed. 

He  had  never  heard  of  Babel,  poor  soul,  but  he 
was  as  subject  to  the  inconvenience  of  the  confusion 
of  tongues  as  if  he  had  had  an  active  share  in  the 


What  more  wonderful  ?    What  more  fearful  ? 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  17 

sacrilegious   industry  of  those  ambitious   architects 
who  builded  in  the'  plains  of  Shinar. 

"  But  I  can  speak  English  too,"  said  Odalie. 

"Him?"  said  the  Cherokee,  "and  him?" 
pointing  at  Alexander  and  then  at  Hatnish  —  at 
Hamish,  with  his  recollection  of  that  dead  Indian, 
a  Cherokee,  lying,  face  downward,  somewhere  there 
to  the  northward  under  the  dark  trees,  his  blood 
crying  aloud  for  the  ferocious  reprisal  in  which  his 
tribe  were  wont  to  glut  their  vengeance. 

"  Both  speak  French,"  said  Odalie. 

The  Indian  gazed  upon  her  doubtfully.  He 
had  evidently  only  a  few  disconnected  sentences  of 
English  at  command,  although  he  understood  far 
more  than  he  could  frame,  but  he  could  merely  dis 
cern  and  distinguish  the  sound  of  the  admired 
"  Flanzy."  Odalie  realized  with  a  shiver  that  it 
was  only  this  trifle  that  had  preserved  the  lives  of 
the  whole  party.  For  even  previous  to  the  present 
outbreak  and  despite  the  stipulations  of  their  treaties 
with  the  English,  the  Cherokees  were  known  to 
have  hesitated  long  in  taking  sides  in  the  struggle 
between  France  and  Great  Britain,  still  in  progress 
now  in  1758,  for  supremacy  in  this  western  country, 
and  many  were  suspected  of  yet  inclining  to  the 
French,  who  had  made  great  efforts  to  detach  them 
from  the  British  interest. 

"  Where  go  ?  "  demanded  the  chief,  suspiciously. 


1 8  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

"  To  Chote,  old  town/'  she  averred  at  haphaz 
ard,  naming  the  famous  "beloved  town,  2city  of 
refuge,"  of  the  Cherokee  nation. 

He  nodded  gravely.  "  I  go  Chote,  —  travel 
with  white  man,"  he  remarked,  still  watchful- 
eyed. 

The  shadows  were  deepening ;  the  flames  had 
revealed  other  dark  figures,  eight  braves  at  the 
heels  of  the  spokesman,  all  painted,  all  armed,  all 
visibly  mollified  by  the  aspect  that  the  dialogue 
had  taken  on,  —  that  of  an  interpreting  female  for  a 
French  husband. 

"  What  do  —  Chote  —  old  town  ?  "  demanded 
the  chief. 

"  Buy  furs,"  said  Odalie  at  a  venture,  pointing 
at  her  husband. 

The  Cherokee  listened  intently,  his  blanket 
drawn  up  close  around  his  ears,  as  if  thus  shrouded 
he  took  counsel  of  his  own  identity.  The  garment 
was  one  of  those  so  curiously  woven  of  the  lustrous 
feathers  of  wild-fowl  that  the  texture  had  a  rich 
tufted  aspect.  This  lost  manufacture  of  the  Chero 
kee  Indians  has  been  described  by  a  traveler  in  that 
region  in  1730  as  resembling  a  "fine  flowered  silk 
shag." 

"  Ugh  !  "  muttered  the  chief.  "  Ugh  ! "  he  said 
again. 

But  the  tone  was  one  of  satisfaction.     The  buy- 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  19 

ing  and  shipping  of  peltry  was  at  that  date  a  most 
lucrative  business,  furs  bearing  a  high  price  in  all 
the  markets  of  the  world,  and  this  region  bade  fair 
to  be  one  of  the  large  sources  of  supply.  The 
Indians  profited  by  selling  them,  and  this,  too,  was 
the  magnet  that  was  beginning  to  draw  the  hardy 
Carolina  hunters  westward,  despite  the  hazards. 
At  no  other  industry  elsewhere  could  commensu 
rate  sums  of  money  be  earned  without  outlay 
beyond  a  rifle  and  ammunition  and  a  hunter's  cheap 
lodgement  and  fare.  The  Indians  early  developed 
a  dependence  on  the  supplies  of  civilization,  — 
guns,  ammunition,  knives,  tools,  paints,  to  say 
nothing  of  fire-water,  quickly  demonstrating  their 
superiority  to  primitive  inventions,  and  this  traffic 
soon  took  on  most  prosperous  proportions.  Thus, 
although  the  Cherokees  resented  the  presence  of 
the  white  man  upon  their  hunting-ground  in  the 
capacity  of  competitor,  and  still  more  of  colonist, 
they  were  very  tolerant  of  his  entrance  into  their 
towns  and  peaceful  residence  there  as  buyer  and 
shipper  —  one  of  the  earliest  expressions  of  middle 
man  in  the  West  —  of  the  spoils  of  the  chase, 
the  trophies  of  the  Indian's  skill  in  woodcraft. 
Although  the  British  government,  through  treaties 
with  the  Cherokees,  sought  a  monopoly  of  this  traffic 
as  a  means  of  controlling  them  by  furnishing  or  with 
holding  their  necessities  as  their  conduct  toward  the 


2O  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

English  colonists  on  the  frontier  might  render  ju 
dicious,  many  of  the  earlier  of  these  traders  were 
French  —  indeed  one  of  the  name  of  Charleville  was 
engaged  in  such  commerce  on  the  present  site  of 
the  city  of  Nashville  as  early  as  the  year  1714,  his 
base  of  supplies  being  in  Louisiana,  altogether  inde 
pendent  of  the  English,  as  he  was  then  one  of  the 
traders  of  Antoine  Crozat,  under  the  extensive 
charter  of  that  enterprising  speculator. 

The  French  had  exerted  all  their  suavest  arts  of 
ingratiation  with  the  Cherokees,  and  as  the  Indians 
were  now  on  the  point  of  breaking  out  into  open 
enmity  against  the  English,  the  idea  of  a  French 
trader  in  furs,  which  Odalie  had  suggested,  was  so 
acceptable  to  the  Cherokee  scheme  of  things,  that 
for  the  time  all  doubt  and  suspicion  vanished  from 
the  savage's  mind.  Vanished  so  completely,  in 
fact,  that  within  the  half-hour  the  chief  was  seated 
with  the  family-party  beside  their  camp-fire  and 
sharing  their  supper,  and  the  great  Willinawaugh, 
with  every  restraint  of  pride  broken  down,  with 
characteristic  reserve  cast  to  the  winds,  speaking  to 
the  supposed  Frenchman,  Alexander  MacLeod,  as 
to  a  brother,  was  detailing  with  the  utmost  frank 
ness  and  ferocity  the  story  of  the  treatment  of  the 
Indians  by  the  Virginians,  their  allies,  in  the  late 
expedition  against  Fort  Duquesne.  The  Cherokees 
had  marched  thither  to  join  General  Forbes's  army, 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  21 

agreeably  to  their  treaty  with  the  English,  by  which, 
in  consideration  of  the  building  of  a  fort  within  the 
domain  of  their  nation  to  afford  them  protection 
against  their  Indian  enemies  and  the  French,  now 
the  enemies  of  their  English  allies,  and  to  shelter 
their  old  men  and  women  and  children  during  such 
absences  of  the  warriors  of  the  tribe,  they  had  agreed 
to  take  up  arms  under  the  British  flag  whenever  they 
were  so  required.  And  this  the  Cherokees  had  done. 

Then  his  painted,  high-cheek-boned  face  grew  rigid 
with  excitement,  and  the  eagle  feathers  bound  to  his 
scalp-lock  quivered  in  the  light  of  the  fire  as  he  told 
of  the  result.  His  braves  hovered  near  to  hear, 
now  catching  the  broad  flare  of  the  flames  on 
their  stalwart,  erect  forms  and  flashing  fire-locks, 
now  obscured  in  the  fluctuating  shadow.  The  pale- 
faced  group  listened,  too,  scarcely  moving  a  muscle, 
for  by  long  familiarity  with  the  sound,  they  under 
stood  something  of  the  general  drift  of  the  Cherokee 
language,  which,  barring  a  few  phrases,  they  could 
not  speak. 

There  had  been  only  a  very  bloody  skirmish, — 
since  known  as  "  Grant's  defeat,"  —  but  no  fight  at 
Fort  Duquesne,  not  even  a  formal  defence  of  the 
works.  The  French  had  surely  forgotten  General 
Braddock!  They  had  forgotten  the  fleeing  red- 
coated  Unaka  *  soldiers,  who,  three  years  before,  had 

*  White. 


22  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

been  beaten  near  there  with  such  terrible  slaughter, 
and  their  chief  warrior,  the  great  Braddock,  himself, 
had  been  tamed  by  death  —  the  only  foe  that  could 
tame  him !  —  and  lay  now  somewhere  in  those 
eastern  woods.  He  pointed  vaguely  with  his  hand 
as  he  spoke,  for  Braddock's  grave  had  been  left 
unmarked,  in  the  middle  of  the  military  road,  in 
order  that,  passing  over  it  without  suspicion,  it 
might  not  be  rifled  and  desecrated  by  those  savage 
Indians  who  had  fought  with  such  furious  efficiency 
in  the  French  interest.3 

Willinawaugh  paused,  and  all  his  braves  muttered 
in  applause  "  Ugh  !  Ugh  !  " 

To  the  warlike  Cherokee  the  event  of  a  battle 
was  not  paramount.  Victory  or  defeat  they  realized 
was  often  the  result  of  fortuitous  circumstance. 
Courage  was  their  passion.  "  We  cannot  live  with 
out  war,"  was  their  official  reply  to  an  effort  on  the 
part  of  the  government  to  mediate  between  them 
and  another  tribe,  the  Tuscaroras,  their  hereditary 
enemies. 

But  upon  this  second  attempt  on  Fort  Duquesne 
the  British  had  only  to  plant  their  flag,  and  repair 
the  dismantled  works,  and  change  the  name  to  Fort 
Pitt.  For  in  the  night  the  French  had  abandoned 
and  fired  the  stronghold,  and  finally  made  their 
escape  down  the  Ohio  River.  In  all  good  faith,  how 
ever,  the  Cherokees  had  marched  thither  to  help  the 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  23 

Virginians  defend  their  frontier, —  far  away  from 
home  !  So  far,  that  the  horses  of  a  few  of  the 
warriors  had  given  out,  and  rinding  some  horses 
running  wild  as  they  came  on  their  homeward  way 
through  the  western  region  of  Virginia,  these  braves 
appropriated  the  animals  for  the  toilsome  march  of 
so  many  hundred  miles,  meaning  no  harm  ;  where 
upon  a  band  of  Virginians  fell  upon  these  Chero- 
kees,  their  allies,  and  killed  them  !  And  his  voice 
trembled  with  rage  as  he  rehearsed  it. 

For  all  her  address  Odalie  could  not  sustain  her 
role.  She  uttered  a  low  moan  and  put  her  hand 
before  her  eyes.  For  he  had  not  entered  upon  the 
sequel,  —  a  sequel  that  she  knew  well ;  —  the  sud 
den  summary  retaliation  of  the  Cherokees  upon  the 
defenseless  settlers  in  the  region  contiguous  to  the 
line  of  march  of  the  returning  warriors,  —  blood  for 
blood  is  the  invariable  Cherokee  rule ! 

Never,  never  could  she  forget  the  little  cabin  on 
the  west  side  of  New  River  where  she  and  her  adven 
turous  husband  had  settled  on  the  Virginia  frontier 
not  far  from  other  adventurous  and  scattered  pio 
neers.  They  had  thought  themselves  safe  enough ; 
many  people  in  these  days  of  the  western  advance 
relied  on  the  community  strength  of  a  small  station, 
well  stockaded,  with  the  few  settlers  in  the  cabins 
surrounded  by  the  palisades ;  others,  and  this  family 
of  the  number,  felt  it  sufficient  protection  to  be 


24  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

within  the  sound  of  a  signal  gun  from  a  neighboring 
house.  But  the  infuriated  homeward-bound  Chero- 
kees  fell  on  the  first  of  these  cabins  that  lay  in  their 
way,  massacred  the  inmates,  and  marched  on  in  strag 
gling  blood-thirsty  bands,  burning  and  slaying  as  they 
went.  So  few  were  the  settlers  in  that  region  that 
there  was  no  hope  in  uniting  for  defense.  They  fled 
wildly  in  scattered  groups,  and  this  little  household 
found  itself  in  the  untried,  unfrequented  region  west 
of  the  great  Indian  trail,  meditating  here  a  tempo 
rary  encampment,  until  the  aggrieved  Cherokees  on 
their  homeward  march  should  all  have  passed  down 
the  "Warrior's  Path"  to  their  far-away  settlements 
south  of  the  Tennessee  River.  Then,  the  way  being 
clear,  the  fugitives  hoped  to  retrace  their  journey, 
cross  New  River  and  regain  the  more  eastern  section 
of  Virginia.  Meantime  they  were  slipping  like 
shadows  through  the  dark  night  into  the  great  un 
known  realms  of  this  uninhabited  southwestern 
wilderness,  itself  a  land  of  shadow,  of  dreams,  of  the 
vague  unreality  of  mere  rumor.  Some  intimation 
of  their  flight  must  have  been  given,  for  following 
their  trail  had  skulked  the  Indian  whom  Hamish 
had  killed,  —  a  spy  doubtless,  the  forerunner  of 
these  Cherokees,  who,  but  for  thinking  them  French, 
would  have  let  out  their  spirits  into  the  truly  un 
known,  by  way  of  that  great  mountain  pass  opening 
on  an  unknown  world.  If  the  savages  but  dreamed 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  25 

of  the  fate  that  had  befallen  their  scout !  —  she 
hardly  dared  look  at  Hamish  when  she  thought  of 
the  dead  Indian,  lest  her  thought  be  read. 

She  wondered  what  had  become  of  her  neighbors; 
where  had  they  gone,  and  how  had  they  fared,  and 
where  was  she  herself  going  in  this  journey  to  Chote, 
—  a  name,  a  mere  name,  heard  by  chance,  and  re 
peated  at  haphazard,  to  which  she  had  committed 
the  future. 

This  fresh  anxiety  served  to  renew  her  attention. 
Willinawaugh,  still  rehearsing  the  griefs  of  his  peo 
ple,  and  the  perfidy,  as  he  construed  it,  of  the  gov 
ernment,  was  detailing  the  perverse  distortion  of  the 
English  compliance  with  their  treaty  to  erect  a  great 
defensive  work  in  the  Cherokee  nation — the  heart 
of  the  nation  —  to  aid  them  in  their  wars  on  Indian 
enemies,  and  to  protect  their  country  and  the  non- 
combatants  when  the  warriors  should  be  absent  in 
the  service  of  their  allies,  the  English.  Such  a  work 
had  the  government  indeed  erected,  on  the  south 
bank  of  the  Tennessee  River,  mounted  with  twelve 
great  cannon,  not  five  miles  from  Chote,  old  town, 
and  there,  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  in  advance 
of  Anglo-American  civilization,  lay  within  it  now 
the  garrison  of  two  hundred  English  soldiers ! 

Odalie's  heart  gave  a  great  bound !  She  felt 
already  safe.  To  be  under  the  protection  of  British 
cannon  once  more  !  To  listen  to  an  English  voice ! 


26  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

Her  brain  was  a-whirl.  She  could  hear  the  drums 
beat.  She  could  hear  the  sentry's  challenge.  She 
even  knew  the  countersign  —  "  God  save  the  king  !  " 
—  they  were  saying  that  to-night  at  Fort  Loudon  as 
the  guard  turned  out ;  —  she  did  not  know  it ;  she 
never  knew  it ;  she  was  only  sure  of  it ! 

Willinawaugh  had  never  heard  of  the  agriculturist 
who  sowed  dragon's  teeth  and  whose  crop  matured 
into  full-armed  soldiers.  But  he  acutely  realized  this 
plight  as  he  detailed  how  the  Cherokees  had  pro 
tested,  and  had  sent  a  "  talk  "  (letter)  to  the  Earl  of 
Loudon,  who  had  been  at  the  time  commander-in- 
chief  of  the  British  forces  in  America,  setting  forth 
the  fact  that  the  Cherokees  did  not  like  the  presence 
of  so  many  white  people  among  them  as  the  two 
hundred  soldiers  and  the  settlers  that  had  gathered 
about  the  place.  The  military  occupation  made  the 
fort  a  coercion  and  menace  to  the  Cherokee  people, 
and  they  requested  him  to  take  away  the  soldiers 
and  relinquish  the  fort  with  its  twelve  great  guns  and 
other  munitions  of  war  to  the  Cherokee  nation,  — 
to  which  suggestion  the  Earl  of  Loudon  had  seemed 
to  turn  a  deaf  ear. 

Alexander  MacLeod,  deliberating  gravely,  real 
ized  that  under  such  circumstances  the  fort  would 
ultimately  be  used  against  the  English  interest 
that  it  was  designed  to  foster,  by  reason  of  the  ever- 
ready  machinations  of  the  French  influence  among 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  27 

the  Cherokees.  The  fort  was  evidently  intended 
to  afford  protection  to  the  Cherokees,  but  only  so 
long  as  they  were  the  allies  of  the  English. 

Much  of  the  night  passed  in  this  discourse,  but 
at  length  Willinawaugh  slept,  his  feet  toward  the  fire, 
around  which  the  other  Indians,  all  rolled  in  their 
blankets,  like  the  spokes  of  a  wheel  about  a  hub, 
were  already  disposed.  Alexander  MacLeod  had 
been  nearly  the  last  man  to  drop  out  of  the  conversa 
tion.  He  glanced  up  to  note  that  Odalie  sat  still 
wide  awake  with  her  back  against  the  trunk  of  a 
great  chestnut-oak,  her  eyes  on  the  fire,  the  child  in 
her  arms.  They  exchanged  a  glance  which  said  as 
plain  as  speech  that  he  and  Hamish  and  she  would 
divide  the  watch.  Each  would  rest  for  two  or  three 
hours  and  watch  while  the  others  slept.  It  be 
hooved  them  to  be  cautious  and  guard  against  sur 
prise.  The  recollection  of  that  dead  Indian,  lying 
on  his  face  in  the  woods  miles  to  the  north  of  them, 
and  the  doubt  whether  or  not  he  belonged  to  this 
party,  and  the  sense  of  vengeance  suspended  like 
a  sword  by  a  hair,  —  all  impinged  very  heavily  on 
Hamish's  consciousness,  and  in  his  own  phrase  he 
had  to  harry  himself  to  sleep.  Alexander,  real 
izing  that,  as  the  ablest  of  the  family,  he  was  their 
chief  means  of  defense,  betook  himself  to  much- 
needed  repose,  and  Odalie  was  the  only  waking 
human  being  in  many  and  many  a  mile.  Now  and 


28  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

again  she  heard  far  away  the  hooting  of  an  owl,  or 
the  scream  of  a  panther,  and  once,  close  at  hand, 
the  leaves  stirred  with  a  stealthy  tread  and  the 
horses  snorted  aloud.  She  rose  and  threw  more 
lightwood  on  the  flaring  fire,  and  as  the  flames 
leaped  up  anew  two  bright  green  eyes  in  the  dusk 
on  the  shadowy  side  of  the  circle  vanished ;  she  saw 
the  snarl  of  fierce  fangs  and  no  more,  for  the  fire 
burned  brilliantly  that  night  as  she  fed  the  flames, 
and  far  down  the  aisles  of  the  primeval  forest  the 
protective  light  was  dispensed.  Above  were  the 
dense  boughs  of  the  trees,  all  red  and  yellow,  but 
through  that  great  gate,  the  gap  in  the  mountain 
wall,  she  could  look  out  on  the  stars  that  she  had 
always  known,  keeping  their  steadfast  watch  above 
this  strange,  new  land.  So  accustomed  was  she 
to  nature  that  she  was  not  awed  by  the  pres 
ence  of  the  somber,  wooded,  benighted  mountain 
range,  rising  in  infinite  gloom,  and  austere  silence, 
and  indefinable  extent  against  the  pallid,  instarred 
sky. 

She  began  to  think,  woman-like,  of  that  home 
she  had  left;  in  her  mind  it  was  like  a  deserted 
living  thing.  And  the  poor  sticks  of  furniture  all 
standing  aghast  and  alone,  the  door  open  and  flap 
ping  in  the  wind !  And  when  she  remembered  a 
blue  pitcher,  —  a  squat  little  blue  jug  that  had  come 
from  France,  —  left  on  a  shelf  by  the  window  with 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  29 

some  red  leaves  in  it  to  do  duty  as  a  bouquet,  —  so 
relieved  was  she  now  of  her  fears  for  the  lives  of 
them  all  that  she  must  needs  shed  tears  of  regret 
for  the  little  blue  pitcher,  —  the  squat  little  blue  jug 
that  came  from  France.  And  how  had  she  selected 
so  ill  among  her  belongings  as  to  what  she  should 
bring  and  what  leave  ?  Fifine  had  a  better  frock 
than  that  serge  thing ;  it  would  not  wear  so  well, 
but  her  murrey-colored  pelisse  trimmed  with  the 
sarcenet  ribbon  would  have  added  warmth  enough. 
If  it  were  not  such  a  waste  of  goods  she  would  make 
over  her  paduasoy  coat  for  Fifine,  for  she  loved  to 
see  a  small  child  very  fine  of  attire.  But  precious 
little  time  she  would  have  for  remodeling  the  padua 
soy  coat,  —  a  primrose-tinted  ground  with  dark  red 
roses,  that  had  been  her  "grand'maman's "  when 
new.  ."  I  wonder  if  I  expected  to  live  always  in  a 
hollow  tree,  that  I  should  have  left  that  pair  of 
sheets,  new  ten  hundred  linen,  the  ones  that  I  have 
just  woven,"  she  arraigned  herself  indignantly,  as 
she  mentally  went  over  the  stock  in  the  pack. 
"  And  did  I  think  I  should  be  so  idle  that  I  must 
bring  instead  so  much  spun-truck  so  as  to  weave 
others.  To  think  of  those  new  linen  sheets  !  And 
then  too  that  lovely,  quaint  little  jug  —  the  little 
squat  blue  jug  that  came  from  France  !  " 

Oh,  no ;  Odalie  was  not  at  all  lonely  during  the 
long   watch  through   the  night,  and  did   not  lack 


30  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

subjects  of  meditation.  The  time  did  not  hang 
heavily  on  her  hands  ! 

It  hardly  seemed  that  an  hour  had  passed  when 
Hamish,  in  obedience  to  some  inward  monition, 
turned  himself  suddenly,  looked  up,  stretched  him 
self  to  a  surprising  length,  then  sat  up  by  the  fire, 
motioning  to  her  to  close  her  eyes. 

His  face  was  compassionate ;  perhaps  he  saw 
traces  of  tears  about  her  eyes.  He  could  not  know 
why  she  had  been  weeping,  or  he  might  have  ac 
counted  his  sympathy  wasted.  For  Hamish  looked 
upon  crockery  as  inanimate  and  a  mere  manufacture, 
yet  endowed  with  a  perverse  ingenuity  in  finding 
occasions  to  come  into  disastrous  contact  with  a 
boy's  unsuspecting  elbow,  and  get  itself  broken  and 
the  boy  into  disgrace.  He  had  his  gentle  interpre 
tation  of  her  sorrow,  and  motioned  to  her,  once 
more,  to  close  her  eyes,  and  pointed  up  at  the 
skies,  where  Orion  was  unsheathing  his  glittering 
blade  above  the  eastern  mountains  —  a  warning  that 
the  night  was  well-nigh  spent  and  a  chill  day  of 
early  December  on  the  way.  And  it  seemed  only 
an  inappreciable  interval  of  time  before  Odalie 
opened  her  eyes  again,  upon  a  crimson  dawn,  with 
the  rime  white  on  the  sparse  red  and  brown  leaves 
and  bare  boughs  ;  to  see  breakfast  cooking  under 
Hamish's  ministrations ;  to  see  Fifine  washing  the 
cat's  face  with  fresh  water  from  the  spring  — 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  31 

very  cold  it  was,  as  Fifine  herself  found  it,  when  it 
came  her  turn  to  try  it  herself  and  cry  "  g)uel/e  bar- 
barie!" — to  see  the  Indians  getting  a  party  to  horse 
to  go  back  and  search  for  one  of  their  number,  who 
had  become  separated  in  some  way ;  to  see  poor 
Hamish's  face  pale  with  fear  and  consciousness,  and 
then  harden  with  resolution  to  meet  the  worst  like 
a  man. 

At  length  they  set  forth  in  the  frosty  dawn  of  a 
new  day,  changing  their  route  and  making  their 
progress  further  southward  along  untried  ways 
she  had  never  thought  to  travel.  The  sun  came 
grandly  up ;  the  mountain  range,  wooded  to  the 
summit,  flaunted  in  splendid  array,  red,  and  yellow, 
and  even  purple,  with  the  heavy  growths  of  the 
sweet-gum  trees,  and  their  wealth  of  lingering  foli 
age.  Here  and  there,  along  the  heights,  grim  crags 
showed  their  beetling  precipices,  and  where  the 
leaves  had  fallen,  covering  great  slopes  with  russet 
hues,  the  bare  boles  and  branches  of  the  forest  rose 
frosted  with  fine  lace-like  effects.  Sometimes,  with 
a  wild  woodland  call  and  a  flash  of  white  foam,  a 
cataract  dashed  down  the  valley.  The  feeding  deer 
lifted  their  heads  to  gaze  after  the  party  with  evan 
escent  curiosity  and  then  fell  to  quietly  grazing 
again :  they  had  not  known  enough  of  man  to 
acquire  a  fear  of  him.  Sometimes  arose  the  bellow 
ing  of  distant  herds  of  buffalo,  filling  the  Cumber- 


32  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

land  spurs  and  coves  with  a  wonted  sound,  to  which 
they  have  now  long  been  strangers. 

Wild  turkey,  quail,  wild  duck,  wild  geese,  the 
latter  already  beginning  their  southward  migration, 
were  as  abundant,  one  might  say,  as  leaves  on  the 
trees  or  on  the  ground.  There  were  trout  of  the 
finest  flavor  in  these  mountain  streams,  and  one  might 
call  for  what  one  would  for  dinner.  If  one  cared  for 
sweets  there  was  honey  in  the  honeycomb  in  almost 
any  hollow  tree,  where  the  wild  bees  worked  and  the 
bear  profited ;  and  for  fruit  and  nuts  there  were  the 
delicious  amber  persimmons,  and  the  sprightly  frost 
grapes,  and  walnuts  and  hickory-nuts  and  chestnuts 
galore. 

The  march  was  far  swifter  now  than  the  rate  that 
the  settlers  had  maintained  before  the  Indians  had 
joined  the  party,  and  the  little  girl  was  added  to  the 
burden  of  one  of  the  packhorses,  but  Odalie,  light, 
active,  with  her  native  energy  tense  in  every  nerve, 
and  with  every  pulse  fired  by  the  thought  that 
each  moment  carried  her  nearer  to  the  cannon  of 
Fort  Loudon  and  safety,  kept  step  valiantly  with 
the  pedestrians.  Willinawaugh  sat  at  his  ease  on 
his  horse,  which  was  somewhat  jaded  by  long  and 
continuous  marches,  or  perhaps  his  patience  would 
not  have  sufficed  to  restrain  him  to  the  pace 
of  the  pioneers  and  his  own  unmounted  follow 
ers.  A  grave  spirit  of  amity  still  pervaded  the 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  33 

party,  but  there  was  little  talk.  Odalie  relegated 
herself  to  the  subservient  manner  and  subordinate 
silence  befitting  a  squaw ;  MacLeod,  restricted  to 
the  French  language  and  his  bit  of  Cherokee,  feared 
that  his  interest  might  lead  him  beyond  the  bounds 
of  the  simulation  their  safety  required;  Hamish 
was  silent,  too,  partly  tamed  by  the  halt  which  they 
now  and  then  made  on  rising  ground,  when  the 
chief  would  turn  his  keen,  high-nosed  profile,  dis 
tinct  upon  the  faint  tints  of  the  blue  mountains 
beyond,  his  eagle  feathers  on  his  scalp-lock  blowing 
back  against  the  sky,  and  cast  a  sharp-eyed  glance 
over  the  landscape  to  discern  if  perchance  the  search 
party,  from  which  they  had  separated,  was  now 
coming  to  rejoin  them.  These  frequent  halts  were 
discontinued  after  two  days,  when  the  Indian  saw 
fit  to  change  his  proposed  line  of  march,  and  the 
rest  of  his  party,  if  following,  could  hardly  be  ex 
pected  to  also  deviate  from  the  agreed  plan  and 
overtake  them. 

They  had  hitherto  proceeded  down  a  valley, 
between  clifty  mountain  walls  on  the  one  hand, 
and  a  high,  steep,  frowning  ridge  on  the  other, 
running  with  the  same  trend  in  unbroken  paral 
lelism.  Now  it  suited  Willinawaugh  to  turn  his 
horse's  head  straight  up  these  seemingly  inacces 
sible  slopes;  and  without  exchanging  a  glance 
or  venturing  a  comment  his  fellow-travelers  obe- 


34  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

diently  followed  his  lead,  conscious  of  the  sly 
and  furtive  observation  of  his  tribesmen  and  even 
of  Willinawaugh  himself,  for  the  suspicion  of 
the  Indian  never  seems  quite  allayed  but  only  dor 
mant  for  a  time.  He  noted  naught  that  could 
excite  it  afresh,  although  it  was  only  by  the  toil 
of  hours  that  they  could  surmount  the  obstacles 
of  great  rocks,  could  find  a  deer-path  through  the 
dense  jungle  of  the  laurel,  otherwise  impenetrable, 
could  cross  foaming  mountain  torrents  so  swift  and 
so  deep  that  more  than  once  it  seemed  that  the 
packhorses,  with  Odalie  also  mounted  now  for  the 
ford,  must  succumb  to  the  strength  of  the  current. 
At  length  the  party  stood  upon  the  summit,  with 
a  dozen  wild  outliers  of  the  Cumberland  and  the 
intervenient  coves  below  their  feet;  then  came  a 
vast  spread  of  undulating  country  to  the  eastward, 
broken  here  and  there  by  parallel  ridges ;  and 
beyond  rose  mountains  brown,  and  mountains 
purple,  and  still  further,  mountains  blue;  and  still 
beyond  and  above,  a-glimmering  among  the  clouds, 
so  high  and  so  vague,  apparently  so  like  the  gossa 
mer  texture  of  the  vapor  that  one  could  hardly 
judge  whether  these  congeners  of  the  very  heavens 
were  earth  or  sky,  mythical  peaks  or  cloud  moun 
tains —  the  Great  Smoky  Range.  In  the  wide, 
wide  world  below,  noble  rivers  flowed,  while  aloft, 
like  the  gods  on  Olympus,  it  seemed  the  travelers 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  35 

could  overlook  the  universe,  so  vast  as  to  dis 
count  all  theories  of  measurement,  and  mark  its 
varying  mood.  So  clear  and  limpid  was  the  air 
that  trivial  incidents  of  that  great  scene  were  as 
serted  despite  the  distance,  and  easily  of  note,  —  a 
herd  of  buffalo  was  distinguishable  in  an  open,  trod 
den  space  about  a  salt-lick ;  a  fleet  of  canoes,  like  a 
bevy  of  swallows,  winged  along  the  broad  surface  of 
the  largest  of  these  splendid  streams,  called  the 
Tsullakee  (Cherokee)  as  Willinawaugh  informed 
them,  for  these  Indians  never  used  the  sound  rep 
resented  by  our  letter  R.  In  the  phonetically 
spelled  words  in  which  it  seems  to  occur  the  sound 
is  more  accurately  indicated  by  the  letter  L.  A 
notable  philological  authority  states  that  the  Eng 
lish  rendering  of  the  word  "Cherokee"  and  others 
of  the  language  in  which  the  letter  R  appears  is  de 
rived  from  the  mistaken  pronunciation  of  neigh 
boring  tribes  and  of  the  French,  who  called  the 
Tsullakee  *  —  La  riviere  des  Cheraquis. 

Odalie  could  not  refrain  from  asking  in  what 
direction  was  Chote,  "  beloved  town,  city  of  refuge." 
She  had  the  art  to  affect  to  interpret  for  her  hus 
band,  but  she  could  not  keep  the  light  from  her 
eyes,  the  scarlet  flush  of  joyful  expectation  from 
her  cheek,  when  the  savage,  with  a  sweeping  wave 
of  his  pipe-stem,  indicated  a  region  toward  the 

*  It  is  known  now  as  the  Tennessee  River. 


3  6  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

southeast  on  the  banks  of  a  tributary  (the  Little 
Tennessee)  of  that  broad  and  splendid  river,  which 
was  now  running  crimson  and  gold  and  with  a 
steely  glitter,  reflecting  the  sunset,  in  the  midst  of 
the  dusky,  dull-blue  landscape,  with  the  languor 
of  evening  slipping  down  upon  it. 

There  it  lay  in  primeval  beauty,  —  the  land  of 
hope.  Oh,  for  the  spirit  of  a  soothsayer;  for  one 
prophetic  moment !  What  did  that  land  hold,  — 
what  days  should  dawn  upon  it ;  what  hearthstones 
should  be  alight ;  who  should  be  the  victor  in  the 
conquests  of  the  future,  and  what  of  the  victim  ? 

But  they  loved  this  country  —  the  Cherokees ; 
their  own,  they  said,  for  the  Great  Spirit  gave  it 
them.  They  even  sought  to  associate  with  those 
splendid  eastern  mountains  the  origin  of  the  Chero 
kee  people  by  the  oft-reiterated  claim  that  the  first 
of  their  race  sprung  from  the  soil  of  those  noble 
summits  or  dropped  from  the  clouds  that  hover 
about  the  lofty  domes.  And  now  Willinawaugh 
broke  from  the  silence  that  the  lack  of  a  common 
tongue  had  fostered,  and  despite  that  embargo  on 
the  exchange  of  ideas  he  grew  fluent  and  his  en 
thusiasm  seemed  to  whet  the  understanding  of  his 
listeners,  who  could  realize  in  some  sort  the  lan 
guage  that  they  could  not  speak.  They  caught  the 
names  of  the  great  landmarks.  The  vast  range, 
on  an  outlier  of  which  they  pitched  their  camp,  as 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  37 

insignificant  in  proportion  as  an  atom  to  the  uni 
verse,  he  called  the  Wasioto  Mountain,  and  one  of 
the  rivers  was  the  Hoho-hebee,  and  others  were  the 
Coot-cla,  the  Agiqua,  the  Canot,  the  Nonachuckeh. 
Hamish  remembered  these  names  long  after  they 
were  forgotten  by  others,  and  the  re-christened 
Clinch  and  Holston  and  French  Broad  flowed  as 
fairly  with  their  uncouth  modern  nomenclature  as 
when  they  were  identified  by  as  liquid  musical  syl 
lables  as  the  lapsing  of  their  own  currents  ;  for  never 
did  he  lose  the  impression  of  this  night;  —  never 
faded  the  mental  picture  of  the  Cherokee  chief,  the 
war-paint,  vermilion  and  black  and  white,  on  his  face 
as  he  sat  before  the  fire,  the  waving  of  the  eagle- 
feathers  on  his  tufted  scalp -lock  blotting  out  half  the 
dull-blue  landscape  below,  which  had  the  first  hour 
of  the  night  upon  it,  and  the  moon,  blooming  like 
a  lily,  with  a  fair  white  chalice  reflected  in  the  dark 
deeps  of  the  Tsullakee  River.  And  in  this  hour 
while  Odalie  reached  out  with  all  tender,  tremulous 
hope  to  the  future  the  savage  told  of  the  past. 

Of  the  past,  —  mysterious,  mythical.  Of  the 
strange  lack  of  tradition  of  this  new  world  that  was 
yet  so  old.  For  here,  in  the  midst  of  the  Cherokee 
hunting-ground,  —  the  whole  country  was  but  a 
great  uninhabited  park  heavily  stocked  with  game, 
the  Cherokee  settlements  being  merely  a  fringe 
upon  its  verges,  —  were  vestiges  of  a  previous 


38  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

population  ;  remains  of  works  of  defense  like  forts  ; 
fragments  of  pottery  and  other  manufactures ;  unfad 
ing  allegorical  paintings  high  on  the  face  of  inaccessi 
ble  cliffs ;  curious  tiny  stone  sarcophagi  containing 
pygmy  bones,  the  mysterious  evidence  of  the  actual 
existence  of  the  prehistoric  "little  people";4  great 
burial  mounds,  with  moldering  skeletons,  and  caves 
entombing  mummies  of  splendid  stature  and  long 
yellow  hair,  evidently  placed  there  ages  ago,  still 
wearing  ornaments  of  beads  and  metals,  with  rem 
nants  of  strange  fabrics  of  fibers  and  feathers,  and 
with  weapons  befitting  a  high  rank  and  a  warlike  race. 
And  who  were  they  ?  And  whence  did  they  come  ? 
They  were  always  here,  said  Willinawaugh.  So  said 
all  the  Cherokees.  They  were  always  here. 

And  whither  did  this  unknown  people  go?  The 
Indian  shook  his  head,  the  flicker  of  the  fire  on  his 
painted  face.  They  were  gone,  he  said,  when  the 
Tsullakee  came.  Long  gone — long  gone  ! 

And  alas,  what  was  their  fate  ?  Odalie  looked 
about  at  the  violet  night,  at  the  white  moon  and 
the  dun  shadows,  with  an  upbraiding  question,  and 
the  night  was  silent  with  a  keen  chill  fall  of  a  frost. 
This  was  no  new  world  into  which  they  were 
adventuring.  It  had  witnessed  tragedies.  It  held 
death.  It  sealed  its  lips  and  embodied  oblivion. 
Oh,  for  the  hopes  of  the  future,  —  and  oh,  for  the 
hopes  of  the  dead  and  gone  past ! 


CHAPTER    II 

THE  next  day  when  Odalie  turned  her  face 
once  more  toward  her  Mecca  of  home  and 
peace  she  felt  that  she  trod  on  air,  although 
her  shoes,  ill  calculated  for  hard  usage,  had  given 
way  at  last,  and  suffered  the  thorns  to  pierce 
through  the  long  rifts  between  sole  and  upper 
leather  and  the  stones  to  still  further  rend  the  gap 
ing  tatters.  MacLeod  would  not  allow  himself  to 
comment  on  it  even  by  a  look,  lest  some  uncon 
trollable  sympathy  should  force  him  to  call  a  halt, 
now  when  he  felt  that  their  lives  depended  on 
pressing  forward  and  taking  advantage  of  the 
pacific  mood  of  the  Indian  and  the  assumed  char 
acter  of  French  traders  to  reach  the  English  fort. 
Hamish,  however,  with  a  dark-eyed,  reproachful 
glance  upbraided  this  apparently  callous  disregard, 
and  then  addressed  himself  to  the  task  of  making 
light  of  the  matter  to  Odalie  in  lieu  of  other  solace. 
"  Tu  ne  ought  pas  F  avoir  fait"  he  gravely  ad 
monished  her  in  his  queer  French.  <c  Tu  ought 
known  better,  Odalie  !  " 

"  Known  what  better  ?  "    demanded    Odalie,  re 
senting  reprimand  in  a  very  un-squawlike  fashion. 

39 


40  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

"  Marcher  in  shoes  !     Mong  Dew  !     Ces  souliers 
couldn't  have  been  made  pour  marcher  in  !  "  he  re 
torted,  with  a  funny  grimace. 

The  facial  contortion  seemed  suddenly  to  anger 
Willinawaugh,  who  had  chanced  to  observe  them  ; 
to  suggest  recollections  that  he  resented,  and  the 
reminder  shared  in  his  disfavor.  He  abruptly 
wreathed  his  fierce  countenance  into  a  simulacrum  of 
Hamish's  facetious  mug ;  he  shrugged  his  shoulders 
with  a  genuine  French  twist ;  and  anything  more 
incongruously  and  grotesquely  frightful  and  less 
amusing  could  hardly  be  imagined. 

"  Fonny  !  vely  fonny  !  Flanzy  !  "  he  exclaimed 
harshly.  "  Balon  Des  Johnnes  !  "  5 

His  unwilling  companions  gazed  at  him  with  as 
genuine  a  terror  as  if  the  devil  himself  had  entered 
into  him  and  thus  expressed  his  presence  among 
them.  Willinawaugh  abruptly  discontinued  his 
"  fonny "  grimace,  that  had  a  very  ferocity  of  re 
buke,  and  leaning  from  his  horse  with  an  expres 
sion  of  repudiation,  spat  upon  the  ground.  Then 
he  began  to  talk  about  Baron  Des  Johnnes  and  his 
sudden  disappearance  from  the  Cherokee  Nation. 

At  Chote,  it  seemed,  was  this  gay  and  face 
tious  Frenchman,  this  all-accomplished  Baron  Des 
Johnnes,  who  could  speak  seven  different  Indian 
languages  with  equal  facility,  to  say  nothing  of  a 
trifle  or  two  such  as  English,  Spanish,  German,  and 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  41 

French,  of  course !  —  at  Chote,  City  of  Refuge,  where, 
if  he  had  shed  the  blood  of  the  native  Cherokee  on  his 
own  threshold,  his  life  would  have  been  sacred  even 
from  the  vengeance  of  the  Indian's  brother!  And  sud 
denly  came  the  Carolina  Colonel  Sumter,  returning 
with  an  Indian  delegation  that  had  been  to  Charles- 
town,  and  found  the  Frenchman  here.  And  with 
Colonel  Sumter  was  Oconostota,  king  of  the  Chero- 
kees,  and  other  head-men,  who  had  just  signed  a 
treaty  at  Charlestown,  promising  to  kill  or  arrest  any 
Frenchman  discovered  within  the  Cherokee  Nation. 
And  who  so  appalled  as  Oconostota,  to  see  his 
friend,  the  gay  Baron  Des  Johnnes,  lying  on  a 
buffalo  skin  before  the  fire,  smoking  his  pipe  in  the 
chief's  own  wigwam.  And  when  Colonel  Sumter 
demanded  his  arrest  Oconostota  refused  and  pleaded 
the  sanctity  of  the  place  —  the  City  of  Refuge. 
And  Baron  Des  Johnnes  arose  very  smiling  and 
bland,  and  bowed  very  low,  and  reminded  Colonel 
Sumter  that  he  was  in  Chote  —  Old  Town  ! 

And  what  said  Colonel  Sumter  ?  He  spoke  in 
the  English,  like  a  wolf  might  talk  —  "  Old  Town 
— or  New  Town  —  I'll  takejy0#  to  Charles  Town!'* 

And  what  did  the  Baron  Des  Johnnes  ?  Not  a 
Cherokee ;  not  bound  by  the  ever-sacred  laws  of 
the  City  of  Refuge !  Although  surrounded  by 
his  friends  he  struck  not  one  blow  for  his  freedom, 
as  man  to  man.  He  suffered  himself  to  be  arrested, 


42  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

single-handed,  by  this  wolf  of  a  Colonel  —  Colonel 
Sumter — saying  in  gentle  protest,  "Mais, M'  sieur!" 

"  MatSy  M'sieur ! "  grimaced  Willinawaugh,  in 
mimicry.  Then  "  Mais  M'sieur  /  "  he  threw  up 
both  hands.  "Mais,  M'sieur!"  he  shrieked  in 
harsh  derision  to  the  unresponsive  skies. 

Alexander  knew  that  the  Baron  Des  Johnnes 
had  been  taken  to  Charlestown  and  examined,  and 
although  nothing  could  be  proved  against  him,  it 
had  been  deemed  expedient  to  ship  him  off  to  Eng 
land.  Perhaps  the  authorities  were  of  opinion  that 
a  man  with  such  conversational  facilities  as  eight  or 
ten  languages  had  best  be  kept  where  "  least  said, 
soonest  mended." 

But  for  the  repeated  harsh  treatment  that  the 
Cherokees  sustained  from  the  English  settlers,  the 
ingratiating  arts  of  the  French  might  have  failed  to 
find  so  ready  a  response.  Sedate  of  manner  and  of 
a  grave  cast  of  mind  themselves,  the  Indians  could 
ill  tolerate  the  levity,  the  gaiete  de  cceur,  of  the 
French,  whom  they  pronounced  "  light  as  a  feather, 
fickle  as  the  wind,  and  deceitful  as  serpents." 

With  this  intimation  of  Willinawaugh's  reserves 
of  irritability  the  pioneers  journeyed  on,  a  trifle 
more  ill  at  ease  in  mind,  which  was  an  added 
hardship,  since  their  physical  sufferings  were  inten 
sifying  with  every  long  mile  of  continued  effort. 
They  began  to  wonder  how  they,  supposed  to  be 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  43 

French,  would  fare  when  they  should  meet  other 
Cherokees,  perhaps  more  disposed  than  Willina- 
waugh  to  adhere  to  the  terms  of  their  treaty  to  kill 
or  make  prisoner  every  Frenchman  who  should  ven 
ture  into  the  Cherokee  Nation,  yet  on  the  other  hand 
perhaps  more  competent  by  virtue  of  a  familiarity  with 
the  language  to  detect  and  resent  the  fact  that  they 
were  not  of  the  French  nationality.  Already  Willi- 
nawaugh  had  counseled  that  they  should  go  further 
than  Chote,  to  ply  their  trade  in  furs,  for  Chote 
was  dangerously  near  the  English  fort  for  a  French 
man  ;  one  of  the  Tuckaleechee  towns  on  the  Canot 
River  was  a  preferable  location,  and  he  promised  to 
contrive  to  slip  them  past  Fort  Loudon  without  the 
commandant's  knowledge. 

They  restrained  all  expression  of  objection  or  dis 
comfort  and  bore  their  growing  distresses  with  a 
fortitude  that  might  rival  the  stoicism  of  a  savage. 
Only  when  an  aside  was  possible,  MacLeod  be 
sought  his  wife  to  loose  the  burden  of  one  of 
the  packhorses  and  mount  the  animal  herself.  She 
shook  her  head  resolutely.  She  had  already  suffered 
grief  enough  for  the  household  stores  she  had  left  be 
hind.  To  these  precious  remaining  possessions  she 
clung  desperately.  "  When  I  can  no  longer  walk," 
she  said,  with  a  flash  in  her  eye  which  admonished 
him  to  desist. 

They  offered  no  comment  on  their  route,  although 


44  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

it  seemed  that  they  had  climbed  the  mountain  two 
days  ago  for  the  express  purpose  of  descending  it 
again,  but  on  the  eastern  side.  MacLeod,  however, 
at  length  realized  that  the  Indian  was  following 
some  faint  trace,  well  distinguishable  to  his  skilled 
eye,  and  the  difficulties  of  the  steep  descent  were  ren 
dered  more  tolerable  by  his  faith  in  the  competence 
of  his  guide.  The  packhorses  found  it  hard  work 
filing  down  the  sharp  declivities  and  sustaining  the 
equilibrium  of  their  burden.  The  chief,  with  his 
lordly  impatience  and  superiority  to  domestic  con 
cerns,  evidently  fumed  because  of  the  delay  they 
occasioned,  and  had  he  not  supposed  that  the  con 
tents  of  the  bales  of  goods  were  merchandise  and 
trinkets  to  be  bartered  with  the  Indians  for  peltry, 
instead  of  Odalie's  slim  resources  of  housekeeping 
wares,  —  sheets,  and  table-linen  and  garments,  and 
frugal  supplies  of  flax  and  seeds,  —  he  would  not 
have  suffered  the  slow  progress. 

Through  the  new  country  below,  that  they  had 
watched  from  the  heights,  they  went  now,  the  moun 
tains  standing  sentinel  all  around  the  horizon  — 
east  and  west,  and  north  and  south,  sometimes 
nearer,  sometimes  more  distant ;  always  mountains 
in  sight,  like  some  everlastingly  uplifting  thought, 
luring  a  life  to  a  higher  plane  of  being.  Now  and 
again  the  way  wended  along  the  bank  of  a  river, 
with  the  steeps  showing  in  the  waters  below  as  well 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  45 

as  against  the  sky  above,  and  one  day  when  they 
had  but  recently  broken  their  camp  on  its  shores 
there  shot  out  from  beneath  an  overhanging  boscage 
of  papaw  trees  a  swift,  arrowy  thing  akin  to  a  fish, 
akin  to  a  bird  —  an  Indian  canoe,  in  which  were 
three  braves. 

The  poor  pioneers  were  exhausted  with  their  long 
and  swift  journey ;  their  hearts,  which  had  been 
stanch  within  them,  could  but  fail  with  the  failure 
of  physical  strength.  Their  courage  only  sufficed 
to  hold  them  to  a  mute  endurance  of  a  dreadful 
expectation,  and  a  suspense  that  set  every  nerve 
a-quiver.  The  boatmen  had  cried  out  with  a  wild, 
fierce  note  of  surprise  on  perceiving  the  party,  and 
the  canoe  was  coming  straight  across  to  the  bank  as 
fast  as  the  winglike  paddles  could  propel  it.  Willi- 
nawaugh  rode  slowly  down  to  meet  them,  and  in 
contrast  to  the  usual  impassive  manners  of  the 
Indians  he  replied  to  the  agitated  hail  in  a  tone  of 
tense  and  eager  excitement.  There  ensued  evi 
dently  an  exchange  of  news,  of  a  nature  which  boded 
little  good  to  the  settlers.  Dark  anger  gathered  on 
the  brow  of  the  chieftain  as  he  listened  when  the 
braves  had  bounded  upon  the  bank,  and  more 
than  once  he  cried  out  inarticulately  like  a  wild 
beast  in  pain  and  rage.  Perhaps  it  is  rare  that  a 
man  has  such  a  moment  in  his  life  as  Alexander 
experienced  when  one  of  the  savages,  a  ferocious 


4.6  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

brute,  turned  with  a  wild,  untamed,  indigenous  fury 
kindling  in  his  eyes,  and  drawing  his  tomahawk 
from  his  belt  smiled  fiercely  upon  the  silent,  mo 
tionless  little  band,  his  deadly  racial  hatred  rein 
forced  by  a  thousand  bitter  grudges  and  wrongs. 

Hamish's  fingers  trembled  on  his  gun,  but  osten 
sibly  no  one  moved.  Willinawaugh  hastily  inter 
posed,  speaking  but  the  magic  words  —  "  Flanzy  — 
Flinch ! "  Then  still  in  English,  as  if  to  reas 
sure  the  pioneers  —  "  Go  Chote  —  Old  Town  — 
buy  fur!" 

The  hatred  died  out  of  the  fierce  Indian  faces. 
The  French  in  the  South,  as  has  been  said,  had 
always  used  every  art  to  detach  the  Cherokees 
from  the  British  interest,  and  even  now  the  men 
who  had  abandoned  Fort  Duquesne,  escaping  down 
the  Ohio  River,  were  sending  emissaries  up  the 
Tsullakee,  to  the  Lower  Towns,  there  finding  fruit 
ful  soil  in  which  to  sow  the  seeds  of  dissension 
against  the  English.  The  assertion  that  these 
travelers  were  French,  and  the  fact  that  by  receiv 
ing  persons  of  this  nation  the  Cherokees  could  re 
quite  with  even  a  trivial  and  diplomatic  injury  some 
faint  degree  of  the  wrong  which  they  considered  they 
had  sustained  from  the  Virginians,  was  more  than 
adequate  to  nullify  for  the  time  the  rage  they  felt 
against  these  pioneers  as  of  the  white  race. 

With  the  instinct  of  hospitality,  which  is  a  very 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  47 

marked  element  of  the  Cherokee  nature,  one  of 
them  signed  with  a  free  and  open  gesture  to  the 
boat. 

"  Beaucoup  marcbez !  "  he  said,  smiling  with  an 
innocent  suavity  like  a  child,  cc  Svim  !  " 

He  did  not  mean  literally  "  swim,"  and  to  offer 
them  the  facilities  of  the  Tennessee  River  for  that 
purpose,  although  this  might  have  been  inferred. 
But  the  pioneers  understood  the  proffer  of  the 
canoe  for  the  remainder  of  their  journey,  and  a 
deadly  terror  seized  the  heart  of  Odalie  as  she 
marked  the  demonstrations  of  the  others  in  pulling 
Willinawaugh  forcibly  from  his  horse  in  spite  of  his 
feigned  objections,  for  the  canoe  could  hold  but 
three  persons.  Little  choice  had  she,  however. 
Willinawaugh,  maintaining  the  affable  demeanor  of 
a  guest  of  conscious  distinction,  was  already  seated 
in  the  boat,  and  pointed  out  Alexander  as  his  pre 
ferred  companion.  For  once  the  Scotchman  disre 
garded  the  wishes  of  his  guide,  philosopher,  and 
friend,  and  taking  his  wife  by  the  hand  motioned  to 
her  to  step  over  the  side  of  the  little  craft.  Odalie 
could  only  look  reproachfully  at  him ;  she  could 
not  contend  with  her  lord  and  master  in  the  pres 
ence  of  savages  —  such  are  the  privileges  of  civiliza 
tion  !  The  Indians,  somewhat  accustomed  by  the 
talk,  and  on  occasion  the  example,  of  the  French 
traders,  and  perhaps  by  traditions  from  the  white 


48  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

settlements,  to  the  idea  of  the  extreme  value  that 
the  paleface  was  wont  to  place  on  wife  or  daughter, 
scornfully  marked  the  instance,  but  beyond  an 
expressive  "Ugh!"  naught  was  said.  The  child 
was  lifted  to  Odalie's  arms  —  the  cat  strapped  pap- 
poose-wise  to  Josephine's  back  and  accommodating 
itself  quiescently  to  the  situation. 

Alexander  had  never  intended  to  embark  Odalie 
and  Josephine  alone  with  the  Indians,  although  his 
will  was  but  a  slight  thing,  so  entirely  were  they 
now  in  the  power  of  the  savages ;  he  motioned 
to  Hamish  to  take  the  paddle,  and  with  the  slight 
mixture  of  French  and  Cherokee  at  his  command, 
intimated  to  the  apparent  owner  of  the  boat  that 
he  would  rather  walk  by  his  side  and  profit  by 
his  converse  than  to  be  able  to  sail  at  will  on  the 
water  like  the  swan  there  —  a  large  and  handsome 
bird,  who  was  giving  the  finest  exhibition  of  that 
method  of  progression  to  be  easily  found  anywhere, 
with  her  white  neck  arched,  her  gliding  motion,  and 
snowy  breast  reflected  in  the  clear  water. 

And  so  Odalie  had  parted  from  her  husband, 
without  so  much  as  a  glance  of  farewell  !  Perhaps 
he  dared  not  look  at  her.  So  far  they  had  come 
together,  and  now  in  these  wild  fastnesses,  among 
these  blood-loving  fiends  in  the  likeness  of  human 
ity,  they  were  separated  to  meet  when?  —  where? 
Perchance  no  more.  She  could  not  —  would  not 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  49 

—  leave   him  thus.     She  would  turn  back  at  the 
last  moment !     She  would  go  back  ! 

She  rose  to  her  feet  so  precipitately  that  with  the 
shifting  of  her  weight  the  canoe  careened  suddenly 
and  was  momentarily  in  danger  of  capsizing  with  all 
on  board.  Willinawaugh  glanced  up  with  a  kindling 
eye  and  a  ferocious  growl.  Hamish,  throwing  him 
self  skillfully  on  the  opposite  side,  adroitly  trimmed 
the  boat.  His  look  of  warning,  upbraiding  and  yet 
sympathizing,  steadied  Odalie's  nerves  as  she  sank 
back  into  her  place.  She  tactfully  made  it  appear 
that  she  had  accidentally  come  near  to  dropping  the 
little  girl  from  her  grasp  and  rising  to  recover  her 
had  shaken  the  poise  of  the  frail  craft.  Willina- 
waugh's  mutter  of  dissatisfaction  showed  that  he 
esteemed  the  possibility  no  very  great  mischance, 
and  set  no  high  store  on  Josephine.  Now  and 
again  he  eyed  the  cat,  too,  malevolently,  as  if  he 
could  ill  brook  her  mannerisms  and  pampered  mien. 
Hamish  had  an  uncomfortable  idea  that  the  Chero 
kee  was  not  familiar  with  animals  of  this  kind,  and 
that  he  harbored  a  wonder  if  Kitty  would  not  serve 
her  best  and  noblest  possibilities  in  a  savory  stew. 
But  for  himself  Hamish  avoided  the  Indian's  eyes 
with  their  curious  painted  circles  of  black  and  white, 
as  much  as  he  might,  for  whenever  their  glances 
met,  Willinawaugh's  facial  contortion  to  deride  the 
"  fonny  "  disposition  he  deemed  a  part  of  Hamish's 


50  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

supposed  French  nature  so  daunted  the  boy  that  he 
bent  his  head  as  well  as  his  muscles  to  the  work. 

That  day  was  like  a  dream  to  Odalie,  and,  indeed, 
from  the  incongruity  of  her  mental  images  she 
hardly  knew  whether  she  was  sleeping  or  waking. 
One  moment  it  seemed  to  her  that  she  was  in 
Carolina,  in  the  new  frame  mansion  that  she 
had  always  thought  so  fine,  sitting  on  the  arm 
of  her  grandmother's  chair,  with  her  dark  hair 
against  the  white  locks  and  the  snowy  cap,  while  she 
babbled,  in  the  sweet  household  patois  of  French 
children  that  has  no  lexicon,  and  no  rules,  and  is 
handed  down  from  one  generation  to  another,  her 
girlish  hopes,  and  plans,  and  anxieties,  to  find  the 
grandmother's  fine,  old,  deft  hand  smooth  all 
the  difficulties  away  and  make  life  easy,  and  hope 
possible,  and  trouble  a  mere  shadow. 

Alas !  that  brightening  perspective  of  the  colonial 
garden,  where  the  jasmine,  gold  and  white,  clung  to 
the  tall  trellises,  and  the  clove  gillyflower,  and  the 
lilies  and  roses  grew  in  the  borders  in  the  broad  suf 
fusions  of  the  sunshine,  was  metamorphosed  to  the 
wide  spread  of  the  Tennessee  River,  with  the  noon 
day  blaze  on  its  burnished  expanse  of  ripples  ;  and 
grand'maman  had  long  since  ceased  her  ministry  of 
soothing  and  consolation,  and  found  her  own  com 
fort  in  the  peace  and  quiet  of  the  grave.  And  ere 
Odalie  could  suffer  more  than  a  pang  to  realize  that 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  51 

she  was  so  far  from  that  grave,  her  head  drooped 
once  more — she  was  asleep. 

No ;  she  was  awake,  awake  and  splendid  in  a 
white  dress,  her  beautiful  bridal  dress  in  which  she 
had  looked  a  very  queen,  with  her  grand'maman's 
pearl  necklace,  itself  an  heirloom,  about  her  white 
throat.  And  so,  standing  at  the  altar  of  the  little 
church  with  Alexander,  and  much  light  about  her, 
and  a  white  dress,  oh,  very  white  —  and  suddenly ! 
all  the  church  is  stricken  to  darkness.  No;  there 
is  light  again ! 

It  was  a  flash  from  a  thunder  cloud,  reflected  in 
sinister,  forked  lines  in  the  Tennessee  River,  so 
that  they  seemed  in  the  very  midst  of  the  lightning, 
until  it  vanished  into  the  darkness  of  a  lowering 
black  sky,  that  overhung  the  water  and  made  all  the 
woods  appear  bleak  and  leafless,  though  here  and 
there  still  a  red  tree  blazed.  The  world  was  drear 
ier  for  these  grim  portents  of  storm,  for  all  the  way 
hitherto  fair  weather  had  smiled  upon  their  prog 
ress.  Still  she  could  not  heed  —  she  did  not  care 
even  when  the  rain  came  down  and  pitilessly  beat 
upon  her  white  face ;  she  did  not  know  when  Fifine 
crept  under  the  shawl  which  Hamish  threw  around 
her,  and  that  the  frightened  little  girl  held  to  her 
tight  with  both  arms  around  her  waist,  while 
the  pioneer  cat  very  discreetly  nestled  down  in 
the  basket  on  Josephine's  back.  She  was  not 


52  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

roused  even  by  loud  voices  when  later  a  pettiaugre, 
a  much  larger  boat  than  theirs,  pulled  alongside 
with  eight  or  ten  warriors  and  remained  in  close 
and  unremitting  conversation  with  Willinawaugh 
for  several  miles.  Poor  Hamish  could  hardly 
sustain  himself.  He  felt  practically  alone.  Odalie 
was,  he  thought,  on  the  verge  of  death  from  ex 
haustion  and  realized  naught  of  her  surroundings. 
His  brother  had  been  left  in  these  wild  woods  with 
a  party  of  savages,  who  were  as  likely  to  murder  him 
for  a  whim  or  for  the  treasures  of  the  bales  which 
the  packhorses  carried,  as  to  respect  the  safe  con 
duct  of  Willinawaugh  and  the  supposed  character 
of  French  traders.  This,  Hamish  was  aware,  hardly 
sufficed  now,  so  unrestrained  was  the  ferocity  of  the 
glances  cast  upon  them  by  the  Indians  in  the  petti- 
augre  alongside  —  so  like  the  glare  of  a  savage  cata 
mount,  ready  to  leap  upon  its  prey  and  yet  with  a 
joyance  in  its  ferocity,  as  if  this  rage  were  not  the 
pain  of  anger  but  the  pleasure  of  it. 

What  subtle  influence  roused  Odalie  at  last  she 
could  hardly  have  said ;  perhaps  the  irresistible 
torpor  of  exhaustion  had  in  some  sort  recruited  her 
faculties.  The  storm  was  gone,  unseasonable  and 
transient,  and  only  a  broken  remnant  of  its  clouds 
hung  about  the  western  mountains.  Toward  the 
east  the  sky  was  clear  and  a  dull  fluctuation  of 
sunset,  alternating  with  shadow,  was  on  the  land- 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  53 

scape.  As  a  sudden  suffusion  of  this  broad,  low, 
dusky  glare  lay  upon  the  scene  for  a  moment,  she  saw 
against  the  dark  blue  Chilhowee  Mountain  in  the 
middle  distance  something  glimmering  and  waving, 
and  as  she  strained  her  eyes  it  suddenly  floated 
broadly  forth  to  the  breeze,  —  the  blended  cross  of  St. 
George  and  St.  Andrew  blazoned  on  the  British  flag. 

In  one  moment  she  was  strong  again ;  alert, 
watchful,  brave,  despite  that  boat  close  alongside 
and  the  alternate  questions  and  remonstrances  of 
the  fierce  and  cruel  Indians.  One  of  them,  the 
light  of  a  close  and  fine  discernment  in  his  savage 
features,  was  contending  that  Willinawaugh  was 
deceived ;  that  these  were  no  French  people ;  that 
the  cast  of  the  face  of  the  "  young  dog"  was  Eng 
lish  ;  he  looked  like  the  Virginia  settlers  and  hunt 
ers  ;  even  like  the  men  at  the  fort. 

Willinawaugh  had  the  air  of  deigning  much  to 
consider  the  plea  that  the  other  Indians  preferred. 
He  only  argued  astutely  that  they  all  spoke  French 
among  themselves, — man,  boy,  squaw,  and  pappoose. 
They  showed  gratitude  when  he  had  promised  them 
that  they  should  not  be  obliged  to  pass  the  English 
fort  and  risk  the  chance  of  detection.  He  intended 
to  slip  them  up  the  Tellico  River  where  it  flows 
into  the  Tennessee  a  mile  on  the  hither  side  of 
the  fort  and  thence  make  their  way  to  a  remoter 
Indian  town  than  Chote. 


54  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

The  skeptical  Cherokee,  Savanukah,  immediately 
asserted  boastfully  that  he  spoke  "Flinch"  himself 
and  would  test  the  nationality  of  the  boy. 

Hamish  had  never  had  great  scholastic  advan 
tages  and  had  sturdily  resisted  those  that  Odalie 
would  have  given  him.  He  remembered  with  de 
spair  the  long  lines  of  French  verbs  in  the  little  dog's- 
eared  green  book  that  all  her  prettiest  sisterly  arts 
could  never  induce  him  to  learn  to  conjugate.  Why 
should  he  ever  need  more  talking  appliance  than  he 
already  possessed,  he  used  to  argue.  He  could  tell 
all  he  knew,  and  more  besides,  in  the  somewhat 
limited  English  vocabulary  at  his  command.  "  Par- 
lez  vous  ?  Parlez,  fou  !  "  he  was  wont  to  exclaim, 
feeling  very  clever.  How  should  he  have  dreamed 
that  Odalie's  little  Vocabulaire  Franqais  would  be 
more  efficacious  to  save  his  life  than  his  rifle  and 
his  deadly  aim  ? 

He  looked  toward  her  once  more  in  his  despair. 
The  boats  were  now  among  a  series  of  obstructions 
formed  by  floating  debris  of  a  recent  storm,  —  many 
branches  of  trees,  here  and  there  a  bole  itself,  up 
rooted  and  flung  into  the  river  by  the  violence  of 
the  tempest,  —  which  necessitated  careful  steering 
and  paddling  and  watching  the  current  to  take  them 
through  safely.  It  threw  the  two  boats  apart  for  a 
space,  prolonging  Hamish's  suspense,  yet  serving  as 
a  reprieve  to  the  ordeal  of  his  examination  as  to  his 


The  canoe  rocked  in  the  swirls 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  55 

proficiency  in  the  French  language  by  the  erudite 
Cherokee.  The  canoe  rocked  in  the  swirls,  and 
although  Willinawaugh  sat  still  in  stately  impassive- 
ness,  Odalie  and  Fifine  clung  to  the  gunwale.  Ham- 
ish's  eyes  met  Odalie's,  which  were  clear,  liquidly 
bright,  as  if  fired  with  some  delightful  anticipation, 
and  yet  weary  and  feverishly  eager.  Oh,  this  was 
delirium  !  She  did  not  realize  her  surroundings  ;  her 
intelligence  was  gone !  His  poor  young  heart  swelled 
nearly  to  bursting  as  he  turned  back  with  aching 
arms  and  dazzled  eyes  and  throbbing,  feverish  pulses 
to  the  careful  balancing  of  the  paddle,  for  Willina 
waugh  was  an  exacting  coxswain.  Hamish  could  not 
know  what  vision  had  been  vouchsafed  to  Odalie  in 
the  midst  of  the  gloomy  woods  while  the  other 
Indians  and  Willinawaugh  had  wrangled  and  he 
had  hung  absorbed  upon  their  words  as  on  the 
decrees  of  fate.  Even  she  at  first  had  deemed  it 
but  hallucination,  the  figment  of  some  fever  of  the 
brain  —  this  had  been  a  day  of  dreams  !  Yet  there 
it  had  stood  on  the  river  bank  with  the  primeval 
woods  around  it,  with  the  red  sunset  amongst  the 
clouds  above  it,  with  the  sunset  below  it,  reflected  in 
the  current  of  the  river,  full  of  sheen  and  full  of 
shadow,  —  a  figure,  a  hunter,  looking  out  at  the 
boats  ;  a  white  man,  —  a  man  she  had  never  before 
seen. 

How  he  stared !     She  dared  make  no  signal  of 


56  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

distress.  She  only  turned  her  head  that  she  might 
look  back  covertly  with  a  face  full  of  meaning. 
The  next  moment  she  saw  him  mount  his  horse  in 
the  buffalo  path  in  the  cane-brake  and  gallop  off  at 
a  breakneck  speed. 

But  was  she  sure  —  had  she  seen  aught,  she  asked 
herself,  tremulously.  For  it  had  been  a  day  of 
dreams  —  it  had  been  a  day  of  dreams  !  And  the 
confluence  of  the  Tellico  River  with  the  Tennessee 
might  be  so  hopelessly  near ! 

The  progress  of  both  boats  was  very  slow  now, 
upstream  against  the  current  and  the  debris  of  the 
storm  ;  even  the  crew  of  Indian  braves  needed  to 
pull  with  vigor  to  make  the  clear  water  again. 
When  this  was  reached  they  rested  motionless,  the 
duplication  of  the  pettiaugre  and  the  feather  head 
dress  of  the  Cherokees  as  clearly  pictured  in  the 
bright,  still  reaches  of  the  river  as  above  in  the 
medium  of  the  air  between  sunset  and  dusk. 

They  were  all  looking  back,  all  commenting  on 
Hamish's  slow  progress.  He  had  the  current  and 
his  exhaustion  both  against  him,  and  the  most  ear 
nest  and  well-equipped  postulant  of  culture  would 
hardly  be  eager  to  go  to  an  examination  in  the 
French  language  when  his  life  was  to  be  the  forfeit 
of  failure.  The  sound  of  the  river  was  loud  on  the 
evening  air ;  a  wind  was  astir  on  either  bank,  —  a 
pillaging  force,  rifling  the  forest  of  the  few  leaves 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  57 

it  might  still  treasure ;  now  and  then  a  scurrying 
cloud  of  them  fled  before  the  blast  against  the  sky  ; 
the  evening  had  grown  chill ;  the  boy  felt  its  dank 
depression  in  every  nerve  despite  the  drops  of 
perspiration  that  stood  upon  his  brow  as  he  too 
paddled  into  the  clear  water.  He  held  the  boat 
stationary  by  a  great  effort. 

He  had  come  to  the  end.  He  could  strive  no 
more.  He  saw  Savanukah  rise  up  in  the  pettiaugre, 
looking  toward  him.  The  next  moment  the  savage 
turned  his  head.  There  was  an  alien  sound  upon  the 
air,  so  close  at  hand  that  despite  the  fret  and  turmoil 
of  the  water,  the  blare  of  the  wild  wind,  the  tumul 
tuous  clashing  together  of  the  bare  boughs  in  the 
black  forest,  it  arrested  the  attention.  Once  more 
it  asserted  itself  against  the  tumult,  and  then  Ham- 
ish,  his  head  spinning  around  until  he  thought 
that  the  canoe  had  broken  loose  from  his  mechan 
ical  plying  of  the  paddle,  recognized  the  regular 
rhythmical  dash  of  oars. 


CHAPTER   III 

IN  the  next  instant  from  beyond  a  curve  in  the 
river  a  boat  shot  into  the  current,  —  a  large 
row-boat,  manned  by  twelve  red-coated  sol 
diers,  bending  to  the  oars,  whose  steady  strokes 
sent  the  craft  down  the  stream  with  the  speed,  it 
seemed,  of  a  meteor. 

They  were  alongside  and  a  non-commissioned 
officer  was  in  diplomatic  converse  with  Willina- 
waugh  before  Hamish  had  regained  possession  of 
his  faculties.  Very  diplomatic  was  the  conference, 
for  the  corporal  had  his  pacific  orders  and  Willina- 
waugh  was  burdened  with  the  grave  anxiety  to  make 
the  facts  conform  at  once  to  the  probabilities,  yet 
sustain  the  impeccability  of  his  own  conduct.  A 
little  network  of  wrinkles,  almost  like  a  visible 
mesh,  gathered  at  the  corners  of  his  eyes  and  gave 
token  of  his  grave  cogitation. 

The  corporal,  a  dark-haired,  blue-eyed,  florid 
young  Irishman,  looking  very  stanch  and  direct 
and  steady,  but  not  without  a  twinkle  of  humor 
which  betokened  some  histrionic  capacity  to  support 
the  situation,  speaking  partly  in  English  and  partly, 

58 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  59 

glibly  enough,  in  very  tolerable  Cherokee,  although 
incongruously  embellished  with  an  Irish  brogue, 
detailed  that  Captain  Stuart  had  been  apprised  that 
there  was  a  band  of  Indians  on  the  river  who  had 
some  white  people  with  them,  and  he  wished  to 
know  if  these  white  people  were  French,  in  which 
case,  according  to  the  treaty  made  with  the  Cher- 
okees,  they  must  be  arrested  and  delivered  up  to 
the  commandant  of  the  fort,  or  if  English,  he  wished 
to  be  assured  that  they  were  at  liberty  to  go  where 
they  pleased,  and  were  under  no  restraint. 

As  the  officer  concluded,  having  bowed  to  Odalie 
with  much  politeness,  considering  he  was  not  yet 
informed  as  to  whether  she  were  of  a  party  of  French 
emissaries,  forever  sowing  dissension  amongst  the 
Cherokee  allies  of  the  English,  he  drew  himself  up 
very  erect,  with  a  complacent  mien.  He  was  con 
scious  of  being  a  fine-looking  fellow,  and  he  had  not 
seen  so  handsome  a  young  woman  of  her  evident 
position  in  life  for  a  month  of  Sundays.  Neverthe 
less  he  kept  one  eye  on  Willinawaugh,  who  was  also 
eminently  worthy  of  his  respectful  attention. 

"  Ingliss  —  all  Ingliss,"  said  the  chief,  unexpect 
edly. 

The  Indians  in  the  pettiaugre,  listening  at 
tentively,  gave  no  sign  of  surprise  upon  this  state 
ment,  so  at  variance  with  the  warrior's  previous  rep 
resentations.  His  ruse  to  shield  the  travelers  now 


60  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

by  declaring  them  English  shielded  himself  as  well, 
for  being  a  chief  and  head-man  he  could  hardly 
find  a  plausible  subterfuge  to  cloak  his  playing  the 
role  of  guide,  philosopher,  and  friend  to  people  of  a 
nation  so  obnoxious  to  his  English  allies,  and  estab 
lishing  them  in  the  very  heart  of  the  Cherokee  na 
tion,  contrary  to  its  many  solemn  obligations  and 
treaties. 

After  a  moment's  further  reflection,  Willinawaugh 
said  again  with  emphasis,  "  Ingliss,  Ingliss."  Per 
haps  he  did  not  desire  to  avail  himself  of  the  added 
fluency  of  explanation  which  the  Cherokee  language 
would  have  afforded  him,  and  which  Corporal 
O'Flynn  evidently  understood.  "  Go  Chote  —  Old 
Town.  Buy  fur  —  man  —  packhorse,"  he  added, 
pointing  across  the  woods  in  the  direction  in  which 
Alexander  MacLeod  was  presumably  still  wearily 
tramping. 

The  corporal  for  the  moment  forgot  how  good- 
looking  he  was.  He  concentrated  his  whole  atten 
tion  on  Willinawaugh's  disingenuous  countenance, 
and  then  turned  and  cast  a  long,  searching  look 
upon  Odal.ie.  The  eyes  that  met  his  own  were 
swimming  in  tears,  and  with  an  expression  of 
pleading  insistence  that  fairly  wrung  his  heart, 
although  he  hardly  understood  it.  If  she  were 
English,  why  then  she  was  free  as  the  air.  If 
French — well,  bedad,  thin,  Corporal  O'Flynn 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  61 

wished  himself  at  the  bottom  of  the  Tennessee 
River,  for  a  French  lady  in  grief  and  under  arrest 
had  no  right  to  be  so  good-looking  at  all,  at  all. 
Here  was  something  wrong,  he  could  but  perceive, 
and  yet  because  of  Willinawaugh's  diplomacy  he 
could  not  fix  upon  it. 

"  What's  your  name,  my  lad  ?  "  he  said  abruptly 
to  Hamish. 

Hamish  had  his  eyes  on  the  water.  His  forti 
tude,  too,  had  given  way  in  the  sudden  relaxation 
of  the  strain  of  suspense.  He  could  not,  would 
not,  lift  his  face  and  let  that  boat's  crew  of  stalwart 
soldiers  resting  on  their  oars,  the  two  ranks  gazing 
at  him,  see  the  tears  in  his  eyes. 

"  Hamish  MacLeod,"  he  made  shift  to  say,  and 
could  say  no  more. 

"  A  good  English  name,  bedad,  for  a  Scotch  one, 
and  an  English  accent,"  Corporal  O'Flynn  mentally 
commented,  as  he  looked  curiously  at  the  boy, 
standing  with  downcast  face,  mechanically  handling 
the  paddle. 

"  Now  by  the  powers,"  said  the  young  soldier  to 
himself  with  sudden  resolution,  "  Captain  Stuart 
may  undertake  the  unraveling  o'  this  tangle  him 
self." 

"  English ! "  he  exclaimed  aloud.  Then  with 
much  courtesy  of  manner,  "  Captain  Stuart  desires 
his  compliments,  and  begs  the  English  party  to  do 


62  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

him  the  honor  to  lie  at  Fort  Loudon  to-night  and 
pursue  their  journey  at  their  convanience."  He 
glanced  up  at  the  sky.  cc  It  grows  late  and  there 
are  catamounts  out,  an'  other  bletherin'  bastes,  an' 
their  howlin'  might  frighten  the  leddy." 

Odalie,  remembering  the  real  dangers  that  had 
beset  her  and  catching  his  serious,  unconscious 
glance  as  he  animadverted  on  the  possibly  terrifying 
vocalizations,  burst  into  momentary  laughter,  and 
then  into  a  torrent  of  tears. 

At  which  the  corporal,  the  boat's  crew,  and  the 
Indian  braves  gazed  at  her  in  blank  astonishment. 
Hysterics  were  a  new  importation  on  the  frontier. 
She  controlled  with  an  effort  her  tendency  to  laugh, 
but  still  wept  with  the  profusion  of  exhaustion  and 
nervous  tension. 

Willinawaugh's  eyes  were  fixed  on  her  with  deep 
displeasure.  "Ugh!"  he  grunted  from  time  to 
time.  «  Ugh  !  " 

"  Oh,  there's  bloody  murder  here,  if  one  could 
but  chance  upon  the  carpse,"  said  the  corporal  to 
himself,  looking  bewildered  from  her  to  the  boy. 

And  now  was  demonstrated  the  fact  that  although 
the  corporal  had  but  the  slightest  bit  of  a  brogue 
in  the  world,  there  was  a  twist  in  his  tongue  which 
showed  that  he  had  at  some  time  in  his  career 
made  a  practice  of  kissing  the  "  Blarney  Stone  "  and 
was  as  Irish  as  County  Clare. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  63 

"  Of  course  Captain  Stuart  couldn't  have  known 
that  his  valued  friend,  the  great  chief,  Willina- 
waugh,  was  to  be  passing  with  the  English  party, 
but,  sure,  he  would  take  it  mighty  ill  if  the  chief 
did  not  stop  over,  too,  and  lie  at  the  fort  to-night, 
—  an'  he  so  seldom  up  from  Toquoe !  Captain 
Demere,  too,  will  expect  the  great  chief.  My  word 
on't,  he  will." 

Now  Willinawaugh,  an  epitome  of  craft,  had  no 
idea  of  adventuring  with  his  supposed  French  friends, 
whom  he  had  endeavored  to  pass  off  as  English,  into 
the  British  stronghold,  for  he  doubted  their  capacity 
to  sustain  their  character  of  compatriots ;  he  had  no 
means  of  judging  of  their  knowledge  of  the  English 
language  and  how  soon  their  ignorance  might  betray 
them.  Since  the  ruse  he  had  adopted  had  evi 
dently  not  sufficed  to  evade  the  enforced  stoppage 
at  Fort  Loudon,  he  had  relinquished  the  intention 
to  take  them  on  past  Chote  to  some  other  of  the 
Overhill  towns,  and  let  them  establish  themselves 
as  French  traders.  He  feared  that  were  they  once 
inside  the  walls  of  Fort  Loudon  this  design  against 
the  agreement  with  his  allies  would  become  trans 
parent.  To  be  sure,  it  must  be  soon  elucidated, 
but  Willinawaugh  was  determined  to  be  far  away 
by  that  time,  and,  moreover,  he  could  send  a  "  talk" 
(letter)  to  Captain  Stuart,  whose  good  opinion  he 
greatly  coveted,  to  say  that  the  French  trader  had 


64  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

deceived  him  and  made  him  believe  that  the  party 
was  English.  At  the  same  time  he  was  too  wary  to 
venture  into  his  valued  friend's  power  with  this 
fresh  grievance  and  with  stormy  times  for  the  two 
peoples  evidently  in  prospect. 

But  he  was  flattered,  infinitely  flattered,  as  indeed 
who  would  not  have  been,  by  Corporal  O'Flynn's 
tone  and  expression  of  ingenuous  eyes  and  respect 
ful  word  of  mouth.  Willinawaugh  was  glad  to 
have  these  Chote  Cherokees  see  how  highly  he  was 
esteemed  —  he  was  indeed  a  great  warrior  and  a 
"  Big  Injun  "  of  exclusive  privilege.  The  invitation 
in  no  wise  was  to  be  extended  to  the  others  to  pass 
the  night  at  Fort  Loudon  —  not  even  to  Savanukah, 
a  chief  himself,  who  spoke  French  ! 

Corporal  O'Flynn  was  now  going  over  in  his 
mind  how  Willinawaugh  might  best  be  insulated, 
so  to  speak,  that  he  might  not  have  means  to  fire 
the  barracks,  should  that  enterprise  suggest  itself  to 
his  fertile  brain,  or  find  a  way  to  open  the  gates,  or 
otherwise  afford  ingress  to  confederates  without ;  how 
to  lock  him  in,  and  yet  not  seem  to  treat  him  as  a 
prisoner ;  to  leave  him  at  liberty,  and  yet  free  to  do 
nothing  but  that  which  his  hosts  should  please.  All 
such  complicated  and  contradictory  details  did  Cor 
poral  O'Flynn  deem  himself  capable  of  reconciling 
—  but  one  such  subject  was  enough.  Unfortunately 
for  the  triumphant  elucidation  of  these  puzzling 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  65 

problems,  Willinawaugh,  with  dignity  and  a  certain 
gruffness,  yet  now  and  again  a  flicker  of  covert 
smile  as  if  to  himself,  declined  to  partake  of  Captain 
Stuart's  hospitality.  He  had  a  mission  to  the  head 
men  of  Chote  which  would  not  brook  delay.  Yet 
he  had  a  message  to  leave  for  the  English  officer. 
He  desired  to  tell  Captain  Stuart  that  he  often 
thought  of  him !  Whenever  he  heard  tales  of 
famous  warriors,  of  British  generals,  he  thought  of 
him  !  He  considered  these  fighting  men  brave  and 
noble,  when  he  learned  of  their  splendid  deeds  in 
battle ;  and  then  again,  they  were  as  naught  in  his 
mind,  —  for  he  had  once  more  thought  of  the  great 
Captain  Stuart ! 

The  corporal,  listening  attentively  to  pick  out 
the  meaning  of  Cherokee  and  English,  made  a  low 
bow  in  behalf  of  Captain  Stuart,  with  a  flourishing 
wave  of  his  hat. 

"  I'll  bear  yer  message,  sir,  and  a  proud  man 
Captain  Stuart  ought  to  be  the  day  !  An'  those 
jontlemen,"  —  he  glanced  at  the  pettiaugre  full  of  In 
dians, — "  be  so  good  as  to  ask  them  to  lead  the  way." 

Then  he  added  in  an  undertone  to  his  own  men, 
"  I  am  glad  on't.  I  don't  want  the  responsibility 
of  takin'  care  of  the  baste.  I  might  be  accused  of 
kidnapin'  the  craythure  if  anythin'  was  to  happen 
to  'm,  —  though  as  to  kids,  he's  more  like  the  old 
original  Billy-goat  o'  the  whole  worruld  !  " 


66  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

Corporal  O'Flynn  cast  the  eye  of  a  disciplinarian 
about  him.  It  was  one  of  the  rules  of  the  tyranny 
he  practiced,  thus  remote  from  civilization,  that 
however  jocose  he  might  be  not  a  trace  of  respon 
sive  merriment  must  decorate  the  faces  of  the  men. 
They  were  all  now,  as  was  meet,  grave  and  wooden. 
At  the  orders  in  his  clear,  ringing  voice  - — "  Let 
fall !  "  and  the  oars  struck  the  water  with  empha 
sis,  "  Give  way  !  "  —  Odalie's  tears  must  needs  flow 
anew.  She  gazed  at  the  dozen  fresh,  florid  young 
faces,  as  the  boat  swung  round  and  they  came  once 
more  near  the  canoe,  as  if  they  were  a  vision  of 
saints  vouchsafed  to  some  poor  groping,  distraught 
spirit,  —  when  they  were  far  indeed  from  being  saints, 
though  good  enough  in  their  way,  too  !  They  all 
looked  with  unconscious  sympathy  at  her  as  she 
sat  and  wept  and  looked  at  them,  and  Corporal 
O'Flynn,  moved  by  the  tears,  exclaimed  below  his 
breath,  "  But,  be  jabbers,  afther  all,  what's  the  good 
of 'em  now  —  better  have  been  cryin'  yesterday,  or 
mebbe  the  day  before.  Back  oars  !  Now  —  now  ! 
Give  way !" 

He  was  the  last  in  the  little  fleet,  and  Hamish 
paddled  briskly  now  to  keep  ahead,  as  he  was  evi 
dently  expected  to  do,  for  Corporal  O'Flynn  in 
tended  that  his  own  boat  should  bring  up  the  rear. 
As  they  fared  thus  along,  Odalie  noted  the  inflowing 
of  that  tributary,  the  Tellico  River  —  how  solitary, 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  67 

how  remote,  how  possible  its  loneliness  had  rendered 
the  scheme  of  Willinawaugh.  Some  distance  be 
yond  appeared  a  settler's  cabin  in  an  oasis  of 
cultivated  land  in  the  midst  of  the  dense  cane- 
brake  ;  then  others,  now  dull  and  dusky  in 
the  blue  twilight,  with  the  afterglow  of  the  sunset 
redly  aflare  above  in  the  amber  sky  and  below 
in  the  gray  and  glimmering  water;  now  with  a 
lucent  yellow  flicker  from  the  wide-open  door  gem 
ming  the  night  with  the  scintillations  of  the  hearth 
stone,  set  like  a  jewel  in  the  center  of  the  wilder 
ness  ;  now  sending  forth  a  babbling  of  childish 
voices  where  the  roof-tree  had  been  planted  close 
by  the  river-side  and  the  passing  of  the  boats  had 
drawn  all  the  household  to  the  brink.  How  many 
they  seemed  —  these  cabins  of  the  adventurous  pio 
neers  !  How  many  happy  homes  —  alas,  that  there 
should  ever  be  cause  to  cry  it  were  better  for  them 
had  they  never  been  ! 

Odalie  began  to  realize  that  she  owed  her  liberty 
and  perhaps  her  life  to  the  first  of  these  settlers  who 
had  espied  the  craft  upon  the  river ;  as  she  marked 
the  many  windings  and  tortuous  curves  of  the 
stream  she  understood  that  he  must  have  galloped 
along  some  straight,  direct  route  to  the  fort  to 
acquaint  the  officers  with  the  suspicious  aspect  of 
the  Indian  party  and  their  white  captives.  As  to 
the  tremendous  speed  the  commandant's  boat  had 


68  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

made  to  their  rescue,  —  she  blessed  anew  those 
reckless  young  saints  who  had  plied  the  oars  with 
such  fervent  effort,  which,  however,  could  hardly 
have  effected  such  speed  had  it  not  been  too  for  the 
swift  current  running  in  their  favor. 

Suddenly  the  fort  came  into  view  —  stanch,  grim, 
massive,  with  the  great  red-clay  exterior  slopes  and 
the  sharp  points  of  the  high  palisades  on  the  ram 
part  distinct  in  the  blue  twilight.  It  was  very  differ 
ent  from  the  stockaded  stations  of  the  early  settlers 
with  which  she  had  been  familiar.  This  fort  had 
been  erected  by  the  British  government,  and  was  a 
work  of  very  considerable  strength  and  admirably 
calculated  for  defensive  purposes,  not  only  against 
the  subtle  designs  of  the  Indians  but  against  possible 
artillery  attacks  of  the  French.  There  were  heavy 
bastions  at  the  angles  and  within  each  a  substantial 
block-house,  the  upper  story  built  with  projections 
beyond  the  lower,  that  would  not  only  aid  the  ad 
vantage  which  the  bastions  gave  of  a  flanking  fire 
upon  an  assailant,  but  enable  a  watch  to  be  main 
tained  at  all  times  and  from  all  quarters  upon  the 
base  of  the  wooden  stockade  on  the  rampart  lest  an 
enemy  passing  the  glacis  should  seek  to  fire  the 
palisades.  But  this  was  in  itself  well-nigh  im 
practicable.  Strong  fraises,  defending  both  scarp 
and  counterscarp,  prevented  approach.  The  whole 
was  guarded  by  twelve  cannon,  grimly  pointed  from 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  69 

embrasures,  and  very  reassuring  their  black  muzzles 
looked  to  one  who  hoped  to  ply  the  arts  of  peace 
beneath  the  protection  of  their  threat  of  war.  Even 
the  great  gates  were  defended,  being  so  thickly 
studded  with  iron  spikes  that  not  an  inch  of  the 
wood  was  left  uncovered.  They  were  broadly  aflare 
now,  and  a  trifle  in  advance  of  the  sentry  at  the 
entrance  two  officers  were  standing,  brilliant  with 
their  red  coats  and  cocked  hats.  They  were  gazing 
with  a  certain  curiosity  at  the  boats  on  the  river,  for 
Corporal  O'Flynn,  having  pressed  forward  and 
landed  first,  had  left  his  men  resting  on  their  oars 
and  taken  his  way  into  the  presence  of  his  superior 
officers  to  make  his  report.  He  had  paused  for 
half  a  dozen  words  with  Hamish  MacLeod  as  the 
boat  passed  the  canoe,  and  when  Odalie  and  the  boy, 
with  a  couple  of  soldiers  at  either  side  maintaining 
the  aspect  of  a  guard,  came  up  the  gentle  ascent  at  a 
slower  pace,  Captain  Stuart  was  already  fully  apprised 
of  their  long  and  perilous  flight  from  Virginia.  He 
stood  awaiting  their  approach,  —  a  tall  man  of  about 
twenty-eight  years  of  age,  bluff  and  smiling,  with 
dense  light-brown  hair  braided  in  a  broad,  heavy 
queue  and  tied  with  a  black  ribbon.  He  had  a  fair 
complexion,  considerably  sun-burned,  strong  white 
teeth  with  a  wide  arch  of  the  jaw,  and  he  regarded 
her  with  keen  steel-blue  eyes,  steady  and  unfathom 
able,  yet  withal  pleasant.  He  took  off  his  hat  and 


jo  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

cordially  held  out  his  hand.  Odalie  could  do  naught 
but  clasp  it  in  both  her  cold  hands  and  shed  tears 
over  it,  mute  and  trembling. 

With  that  ready  tact  which  always  distinguished 
him,  Captain  Stuart  broke  the  tension  of  the  situa 
tion. 

"  Do  you  wish  to  enlist,  Mrs.  MacLeod  ? "  he 
said,  his  smile  showing  a  glimpse  of  his  white  teeth. 
"  His  majesty,  the  king,  has  need  of  stout-hearted 
soldiers.  And  I  will  take  my  oath  I  never  saw  a 
braver  one  !" 

And  Odalie  broke  into  laughter  to  blend  with  her 
tears,  because  she  divined  that  it  was  with  the  inten 
tion  of  passing  on  a  difficulty  that  he  not  ungrace 
fully  transferred  her  hands  to  the  officer  standing 
near  with  the  words,  "  I  have  the  pleasure  of  pre 
senting  Captain  Demere."  However  capable  Cap 
tain  Stuart  might  be  of  dealing  with  savages,  he 
evidently  shrank  from  the  ordeal  of  being  wept  over 
and  thanked  by  a  woman. 

He  has  been  described  by  a  contemporary  histo 
rian  as  c<  an  officer  of  great  address  and  sagacity," 
and  although  he  may  have  demonstrated  these  quali 
ties  on  more  conspicuous  occasions,  they  were  never 
more  definite  than  in  thus  securing  his  escape  from 
feminine  tearfulness. 

Captain  Demere  was  of  a  graver  aspect.  He 
heard  without  impatience  her  wild  insistence  that 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  71 

the  whole  available  force  of  the  fort  should  turn  out 
and  scour  the  wilderness  for  her  husband  —  he  even 
argued  the  matter.  It  would  be  impossible  to  find 
Mr.  MacLeod  at  night  and  the  effort  might  cost 
him  his  life.  "  So  marked  a  demonstration  of  a  mili 
tary  nature  would  alarm  the  Indians  and  precipitate 
an  outbreak  which  we  have  some  reason  to  expect. 
If  he  does  not  appear  by  daylight,  the  hunters  of 
the  fort  who  always  go  out  shall  take  that  direction 
and  scout  the  woods.  Rest  assured  everything  shall 
be  done  which  is  possible." 

She  felt  that  she  must  needs  be  content  with  this, 
and  as  it  had  been  through  the  intervention  of  the 
officers  that  she  and  Hamish  and  Fifine  were  set 
free,  it  did  not  lie  in  her  mouth  to  doubt  their  wis 
dom  in  such  matters,  or  their  capacity  to  save  her 
husband.  Looking  back  to  the  river,  as  upon  a 
phase  of  her  life  already  terminated,  she  saw  the 
canoe  in  which  she  had  spent  this  troublous  day 
already  beginning  to  push  out  upon  the  broad  cur 
rent.  Willinawaugh,  with  an  Indian  from  the  other 
crew  to  paddle  the  craft,  had  eluded  Captain  Stuart, 
who  had  reached  the  water's  edge  too  late  for  a 
word  with  him,  and  who  stood  upon  the  bank, 
an  effective  martial  figure,  and  blandly  waved  his 
hand  in  farewell,  with  a  jovial  outcry,  "  Canawlla  ! 
Canawlla!"* 

*  Friendship  !   Friendship  ! 


72  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

The  features  of  the  chief  were  slightly  corrugated 
with  those  fine  lines  of  diplomatic  thought,  and  even 
at  this  distance  he  muttered  the  last  word  he  had 
spoken  to  the  corporal  as  he  swiftly  got  away  from 
him  —  "  Ingliss  !  "  he  said  again.  "  All  Ingliss  ! " 

As  Odalie  turned,  the  interior  of  the  fort  was 
before  her ;  the  broad  parade,  the  lines  of  barracks, 
the  heavy,  looming  block-houses,  the  great  red-clay 
wall  encircling  all,  and  the  high,  strong  palisades 
that  even  surmounted  the  rampart.  It  gave  her 
momentarily  the  sensation,  as  she  stood  in  its 
shadow,  of  being  down  in  a  populous  and  very 
secure  well.  There  was  a  pervasive  sentiment  of 
good  cheer ;  here  and  there  the  flicker  of  firelight 
fluctuated  from  an  open  door.  Supper  was  either 
in  progress  or  just  over,  and  savory  odors  gushed 
out  into  the  air.  The  champing  of  horses  and 
now  and  then  a  glad  whinny  betokened  that  the 
corn-bin  was  open  in  the  stables  somewhere  in  the 
dusk.  She  felt  as  if  the  wilderness  was  a  dream, 
for  surely  all  this  cordial  scene  of  warmth,  and 
light,  and  cheer,  and  activity,  could  not  have 
existed  while  she  wandered  yonder,  so  forlorn,  and 
desolate,  and  endangered ;  in  pity  of  it,  —  surely  it 
was  a  dream  !  Now  and  again  groups  of  fresh- 
faced  soldiers  passed,  most  of  them  in  full  uniform, 
for  there  had  been  a  great  dress  parade  during  the 
afternoon,  perhaps  to  impress  the  Indians  with 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  73 

the  resources  and  military  strength  of  the  fort ; 
perhaps  to  attach  them  by  affording  that  spectacular 
display,  so  new  to  all  their  experience,  so  imposing 
and  splendid.  Some  of  the  savage  visitors  lingered, 
wistful,  loath  to  depart,  and  were  being  hustled  care 
fully  out  of  the  place  by  a  very  vigilant  guard, 
who  had  kept  them  under  surveillance  as  a  special 
charge  all  the  afternoon.  A  few  soldiers  of  the  post 
coming  in  laden  with  game  wore  the  buckskin 
leggings,  shirt,  and  coonskin  cap  usual  among  the 
settlers,  for  it  had  been  bitterly  demonstrated  that 
the  thorns  of  the  trackless  wilderness  had  no  sort  of 
reverence  for  the  texture  of  the  king's  red  coat. 

Even  the  cat  realized  the  transition  to  the  de 
mesne  of  civilization  and  in  some  sort  the  wonted 
domestic  atmosphere.  She  suddenly  gave  an  able- 
bodied  wriggle  in  the  basket  on  Josephine's  back 
where  she  had  journeyed,  pappoose-wise,  sprang 
alertly  out,  and  scampered,  tail  up  and  waving  aloft, 
across  the  parade.  Josephine's  shriek  of  despair 
rang  shrilly  on  the  air,  and  Captain  Demere  him 
self  made  a  lunge  at  the  animal,  as  she  sped  swiftly 
past,  with  a  seductive  cry  of  "Puss!  puss!"  A 
young  soldier  hard  by  faced  about  alertly  and  gave 
nimble  chase  ;  the  cry  of  "  Puss  !  puss  !  "  going  up 
on  all  sides  brought  out  half  a  dozen  supple  young 
runners  from  every  direction,  but  Kitty,  having  lost 
none  of  the  elasticity  of  her  muscles  during  her  late 


74  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

inaction,  darted  hither  and  thither  amongst  her 
military  pursuers,  eluded  them  all,  and  scampering 
up  the  rampart,  thence  scaled  the  stockade  and 
there  began  to  walk  coolly  along  the  pointed  emi 
nence  of  this  lofty  structure  as  if  it  were  a  back 
yard  fence,  while  the  soldier  boys  cheered  her  from 
below.  In  this  jovial  demonstration  poor  Jose 
phine's  wailing  whimper  of  despair  and  desertion  was 
overborne,  and  with  that  juvenile  disposition  to 
force  the  recognition  and  a  share  of  her  woe  on  her 
elders  she  forthwith  lost  the  use  of  her  feet,  and 
was  half  dragged,  rather  than  led,  by  poor  Odalie, 
who  surely  was  not  calculated  to  support  any  added 
burden.  She  herself,  with  halting  step,  followed 
Captain  Demere  across  the  parade  to  a  salient 
angle  of  the  enclosure,  wherein  stood  one  of  the 
block-houses,  very  secure  of  aspect,  the  formidable, 
beetling  upper  story  jutting  out  above  the  open 
door,  from  which  flowed  into  the  dusky  parade  a 
great  gush  of  golden  light.  Josephine's  whimper 
was  suddenly  strangled  in  her  throat  and  the  tears 
stood  still  on  her  cheeks,  for  as  Captain  Demere 
stepped  aside  at  the  door  with  a  recollection  of 
polite  society,  yielding  precedence  to  the  ladies, 
which  formality  Odalie  marveled  to  find  surviving 
in  these  rude  times  so  far  on  the  frontier,  Jose 
phine  seemed  resolved  into  a  stare  of  dumb  amaze 
ment,  for  she  had  never  seen  a  room  half  so  fine. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  75 

Be  it  remembered  she  was  born  in  the  back 
woods  and  had  no  faint  recollection  of  such  re 
finement  and  elegances  as  the  colonial  civilization 
had  attained  on  the  Carolina  coast,  and  which 
her  father  and  mother  had  relinquished  to  follow 
their  fortunes  to  the  West.  And  in  truth  the 
officers'  mess-hall  presented  a  brave  barbaric  effect 
that  had  a  sort  of  splendor  all  its  own.  It  was  a 
large  room,  entered  through  the  gorge  of  the 
bastion,  and  its  deep  chimney-place,  in  the  recesses 
of  which  a  great  fire  burned  with  a  searchingly 
illuminating  flare,  was  ample  enough  to  afford  a 
substantial  settee  on  either  hand  without  impinging 
on  the  roomy  hearth  of  flagstones  that  joined  the 
puncheons  of  the  floor.  Around  the  log  walls  the 
suffusion  of  light  revealed  a  projecting  line  of  deer 
antlers  and  the  horns  of  buffalo  and  elk,  partly 
intended  as  decoration  and  trophies  of  the  chase, 
and  partly  for  utilitarian  purposes.  Here  and 
there  a  firelock  lay  from  one  to  another,  or  a 
powder-horn  or  brace  of  pistols  swung.  A  glit 
tering  knife  and  now  and  again  a  tomahawk  caught 
the  reflection  of  the  fire  and  bespoke  trophies  of 
less  peaceful  pursuit.  Over  the  mantel-shelf  a 
spreading  pair  of  gigantic  antlers  held  suspended 
a  memento  evidently  more  highly  cherished,  —  a 
sword  in  its  sheath,  but  showing  a  richly  chased 
hilt,  which  Odalie  divined  was  a  presentation  in 


j6  The,  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

recognition  of  special  service.  Other  and  humbler 
gifts  were  suggested  in  the  long  Indian  pipes,  with 
bowls  of  deftly  wrought  stone ;  and  tobacco-bags 
and  shot-pouches  beaded  with  intricate  patterns ; 
and  belts  of  wampum  and  gorgeous  moccasons ; 
and  bows  and  arrows  with  finely  chiseled  flint-heads 
winged  with  gayly  colored  feathers  —  all  hanging 
from  antlers  on  either  side,  which,  though  smaller 
than  the  central  pair,  were  still  large  enough  to  have 
stretched  with  surprise  more  sophisticated  eyes  than 
Fifine's.  The  variegated  tints  of  the  stained  quills 
and  shells  with  which  a  splendid  curious  scarlet 
quiver  was  embroidered,  caught  Odalie's  attention, 
and  reminded  her  of  what  she  had  heard  in  Caro 
lina  of  the  great  influence  which  this  Captain  Stuart 
had  acquired  among  the  Indians,  and  the  extraordi 
nary  admiration  that  they  entertained  for  him.  These 
tokens  of  Aboriginal  art  were  all,  she  doubted  not, 
little  offerings  of  the  chieftains  to  attest  good-will, 
for  if  they  had  been  merely  bought  with  money  they 
would  not  have  been  so  proudly  displayed. 

There  was  a  continual  fluttering  movement  in  the 
draught  from  the  loop-holes  and  open  door,  and 
lifting  her  eyes  she  noted  the  swaying  folds  of 
several  banners  against  the  wall,  carrying  the  flare 
of  color  to  the  ceiling,  which  was  formed  only  by 
the  rude  floor  of  the  room  above. 

But  in  all  the  medley  her  feminine  eye  did  not 


The  Story  of  Old   Fort  London  77 

fail  to  perceive  high  up  and  withdrawn  from  ordi 
nary  notice,  a  lady's  silk  riding-mask  such  as  was 
used  in  sophisticated  regions  at  the  period  to  pro 
tect  the  complexion  on  a  journey,  —  dainty,  fresh, 
of  a  garnet  hue  with  a  black  lace  frill,  evidently 
treasured,  yet  expressively  null.  And  this  was 
doubtless  all  that  was  left  of  some  spent  romance,  a 
mere  memory  in  the  rude  military  life  on  the  far 
frontier,  barely  suggesting  a  fair  and  distant  face  and 
eyes  that  looked  forth  on  scenes  more  suave. 

With  a  sentiment  of  deep  respect  Odalie  observed 
the  six  or  eight  arm-chairs  of  a  rude  and  untoward 
manufacture,  which  were  ranged  about  the  hearth, 
draped,  however,  to  real  luxury  by  wolfskins,  for 
the  early  settlers  chiefly  affected  rough  stools  or 
billets  of  wood  as  seats,  or  benches  made  of  punch 
eons  with  a  couple  of  auger-holes  at  each  end, 
through  which  four  stout  sticks  were  adjusted  for 
legs,  which  were  indeed  often  of  unequal  length  and 
gave  the  unquiet  juvenile  pioneer  of  that  day  a  pecul 
iarly  acceptable  opportunity  for  cheerily  jouncing  to 
and  fro.  There  were  several  of  these  benches,  too, 
but  placed  back  against  the  walls,  for  the  purpose  she 
supposed  of  affording  seats  when  the  festive  board 
was  spread  at  length.  An  absolute  board,  this  figur 
ative  expression  implied,  for  the  stern  fact  set  forth 
a  half  dozen  puncheons  secured  together  with  cleats 
and  laid  across  trestles  when  in  use,  but  at  other 


78  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

times  placed  against  the  wall  beside  the  ladder  which 
gave  access  to  the  room  above.  The  table  was  now 
in  the  center  of  the  floor,  spread  with  some  hasty 
refreshments,  of  which  Captain  Demere  invited  the 
forlorn  travelers  to  partake.  At  the  other  end  lay 
a  draughtsman's  board,  a  Gunter's  scale,  a  pair  of 
dividers  and  other  materials,  where  he  had  been  try 
ing  to  reduce  to  paper  and  topographical  decorum  for 
transference  to  an  official  report  a  map  of  the  region 
which  Rayetaeh,a  chief  from  Toquoe,who  had  visited 
the  fort  that  afternoon,  had  drawn  on  the  sand  of  the 
parade  ground  with  a  flint-headed  arrow.  The  officer 
had  found  this  no  slight  task,  for  Rayetaeh  was 
prone  to  measure  distance  by  the  time  required  to 
traverse  it  —  "  two  warriors,  a  canoe,  and  one  moon  " 
very  definitely  meaning  a  month's  journey  by  water 
course,  but  requiring  some  actively  minute  calculation 
to  bring  the  space  in  question  to  the  proportional 
scale.  Rayetaeh  might  be  considered  the  earliest 
cartographer  of  this  region,  and  some  of  his  maps, 
copied  from  the  sand,  are  extant  to  this  day.  Cap 
tain  Demere  laid  the  papers  of  this  unfinished  task 
carefully  aside,  and  by  way  of  giving  his  hospitality 
more  grace  took  the  head  of  the  table  himself. 

But  Odalie  could  not  eat,  and  wept  steadily  on  as 
if  for  the  purpose  of  salting  her  food  with  tears,  and 
Fifine's  hunger  seemed  appeased  by  the  feast  of  her 
eyes.  Now  and  again  her  head  in  its  little  white 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  79 

mob-cap  turned  actively  about,  and  she  seemed  as 
if  she  might  have  entered  upon  a  series  of  questions 
save  for  the  multiplicity  of  objects  that  enthralled 
her  attention  at  once.  Captain  Demere  desisted 
from  insistence  after  one  or  two  well-meant  efforts, 
and  the  man  who  had  served  the  table  waited  in 
doubt  and  indecision. 

"  It's  a  hard  life  for  women  on  the  frontier,"  the 
officer  observed  as  if  in  polite  excuse  for  Odalie's 
ill-mannered  tears  that  she  could  not  control. 

"  And  for  men,"  she  sobbed,  thinking  of  Alex 
ander  and  marveling  if  the  Indians  would  carry 
him  on  without  resistance  to  Chote,  —  for  he  could 
not  know  she  had  found  lodgement  in  the  fort,  —  or 
further  still  and  enslave  him  —  many  captives  had 
lived  for  years  in  Indian  tribes  —  she  had  heard  of 
this  even  in  Carolina ;  or  would  they  murder  him 
in  some  trifling  quarrel  or  on  the  discovery  of  his 
nationality  or  to  make  easier  the  robbery  of  the 
packhorses.  Ah,  why  had  she  brought  so  much ; 
why  had  she  hampered  their  flight  and  risked  their 
lives  for  these  paltry  belongings,  treasures  to  the 
Indians,  worth  the  shedding  of  much  blood?  How 
could  she  have  sacrificed  to  these  bits  of  household 
gear  even  her  own  comfort !  She  remembered,  with 
an  infinite  yet  futile  wish  to  recall  the  moment, 
how  eagerly  Sandy  had  urged  the  abandonment 
of  these  poor  possessions,  that  she  might  herself 


8o  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

mount  the  horse  and  ease  her  bleeding  and  torn 
feet.  Is  every  woman  an  idolater  at  heart,  Odalie 
wondered.  Do  they  all  bow  down,  in  the  verity 
of  their  inner  worship,  to  a  few  fibers  of  woven 
stuff  and  some  poor  fashioning  of  potter's  clay,  and 
make  these  feeble,  trivial  things  their  gods  ?  It 
seemed  so  to  her.  She  had  bled  for  the  things 
she  had  brought  through  the  wilderness.  She  had 
wept  for  others  that  she  had  left.  And  if  for  such 
gear  Sandy  had  come  to  grief — "I  wonder  —  I 
wonder  if  I  could  find  a  pretext  to  care  for  them 
still ! " 

But  she  only  said  aloud,  with  a  strong  effort  to 
control  her  attention,  "  And  for  men,  too." 

"  Men  must  needs  follow  when  duty  leads  the 
way,"  said  Captain  Demere,  a  trifle  priggishly. 

Odalie,  trying  to  seem  interested,  demanded, 
lifting  her  eyes,  "  And  what  do  women  follow  ?  " 

If  Captain  Demere  had  said  what  he  truly 
thought,  he  would  have  answered :  — 

"  Folly !  their  own  and  that  of  their  hus 
bands  ! " 

He  had  had  close  observation  of  the  fact  that  the 
pioneers  gave  heavy  hostages  to  fate  in  their  wives 
and  children,  and  a  terrible  advantage  to  a  savage 
foe,  and  the  very  bravery  of  so  many  of  these  noble 
helpmeets  only  proved  the  value  of  all  they  risked. 
He  could  not  elaborate,  however,  any  scheme  by 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  81 

which  a  new  country  should  be  entered  first  by  the 
settlers  aided  by  a  strong  occupancy  of  soldiery, 
and  only  when  the  lands  should  be  cleared  and 
the  savages  expelled  the  women  and  children  ven 
ture  forth.  So  he  said  :  — 

"  They  follow  their  destiny." 

He  had  a  smile  in  his  eyes  as  if  appealing  to  her 
clemency  not  to  tax  him  with  ascribing  a  humbler 
motive  to  the  women  than  to  the  men,  as  he  was 
only  making  talk  and  spoke  from  a  natural  depre 
cation  of  dangers  to  non-combatants  who  of  right 
should  be  exempt  from  peril.  His  eyes,  which 
were  large,  were  of  a  color  between  gray  and  brown 
—  darker  than  the  one  and  lighter  than  the  other. 
His  hair  was  brown  and  smooth ;  he  was  slender 
and  tall ;  his  aquiline  nose  and  finely  cut  lips  gave  a 
certain  cast  of  distinction  to  his  face,  although  the 
temples  were  slightly  sunken  and  the  thinness  of 
his  cheek  revealed  the  outline  of  the  jaw  and  chin 
which  showed  determination  and  force,  despite  his 
mild  expression  at  present.  Josephine  fixed  an 
amazed  stare  upon  his  polished  shoes  as  he  crossed 
his  legs,  never  having  seen  any  men's  foot-gear 
save  a  buskin  of  deer  hide. 

"The  men  have  a  natural  interest  in  warfare," 
suggested  Odalie,  forlornly,  seeking  to  be  respon 
sive  to  his  conversational  efforts. 

"  Warfare ! "    exclaimed    Captain    Demere,    with 


82  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Lou  don 

sudden  animation.  "  Contention  with  savages  is 
not  warfare  !  It  cannot  be  conducted  on  a  single 
recognized  military  principle."  He  went  on  to  say 
that  all  military  tactics  counted  for  naught ;  the 
merely  mechanical  methods  of  moving  bodies  of 
troops  were  unavailable.  Discipline,  the  dexterities 
of  strategy,  an  enlightened  courage,  and  the  tre 
mendous  force  of  esprit  de  corps  were  alike  nullified. 

The  problem  of  Indian  fighting  in  America  was 
then  far  greater  than  it  has  been  since  the  scene  has 
shifted  to  the  plains,  the  densely  wooded  character 
of  the  tangled  wilderness  affording  peculiar  advan 
tage  to  the  skulking  individual  methods  of  the 
savage  and  embarrassing  inconceivably  the  more 
cumbrous  evolutions  of  organized  bodies.  But 
long  before  Captain  Demere's  time,  and  often  since, 
the  futility  of  opposing  regular  scientific  tactics 
to  the  alert  wiles  of  the  savage  native  in  his  own 
difficult  country  has  been  commented  upon  by 
observers  of  military  methods,  and  doubtless  recog 
nized  in  the  hard  knocks  of  experience  by 
those  whose  fate  it  has  been  to  try  again  the 
experiment.6 

"  As  to  military  ethics,"  he  added,  "  to  induce 
the  Indian  to  accept  and  abide  by  the  principles 
governing  civilized  warfare  seems  an  impossibility. 
He  cannot  be  constrained  for  a  pledge  of  honor 
to  forego  an  advantage.  He  will  not  respect  his 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  83 

parole.  He  continually  violates  and  sets  at  naught 
the  provisions  of  his  solemn  treaty." 

Odalie  would  not  ask  if  the  white  man  never 
broke  faith  with  the  red  —  if  the  Indian  had  not 
been  taught  by  example  near  at  hand  of  what  brittle 
stuff  a  treaty  was  made.  It  was  not  worth  while  to 
reason  logically  with  a  mere  man,  she  said  to  herself, 
with  a  little  secret  sentiment  of  derision.,  which 
served  to  lighten  a  trifle  the  gloom  of  her  mental 
atmosphere,  and  since  she  could  not  eat  and  little 
backwoods  Fifine's  eyes  had  absorbed  her  appetite, 
it  was  just  as  well  that  Hamish,  who  had  been 
greatly  interested  in  being  shown  over  the  fort  by 
the  jolly  Corporal  O'Flynn,  appeared  at  the  door 
with  the  intelligence  that  their  quarters  were 
assigned  them.  The  courteous  Captain  Demere 
handed  her  to  the  door,  and  she  stepped  out  from 
the  bizarre  decorated  mess-hall  into  the  dark  night, 
with  the  stars  showing  a  chill  scintillation  as  of 
the  approach  of  winter  in  their  white  glitter  high 
in  the  sky,  and  the  looming  bastion  close  at 
hand.  The  barracks  were  silent ;  "  tattoo  "  had 
just  sounded ;  the  great  gates  were  closed,  and 
the  high  walls  shut  off  the  world  from  the  de 
serted  parade. 

Naught  was  audible  in  all  the  night  save  the 
measured  tread  of  a  sentry  walking  his  beat,  and 
further  away,  seeming  an  echo,  the  step  of  another 


84  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

sentinel,  while  out  in  the  wilderness  the  scream  of  a 
wildcat  came  shrilly  on  the  wind  from  the  darkness 
where  Alexander  roamed  with  savage  beasts  and 
still  more  savage  men  far  from  the  sweet  security 
so  trebly  protected  here. 

Not  even  the  flare  of  another  big  homelike  fire 
in  the  cabin  assigned  to  her  could  efface  the  im 
pression  of  the  bleak  and  dark  loneliness  outside 
the  walls  of  the  fort,  and  when  the  three  were 
together,  untrammeled  by  the  presence  of  others, 
they  were  free  to  indulge  their  grief  and  their  awful 
terror  for  husband  and  brother  and  father.  They 
could  not  speak  of  it,  but  they  sat  down  on  a  buffalo 
rug  spread  before  the  fire,  and  all  three  wept  for  the 
unuttered  thought.  The  suspense,  the  separation 
of  the  little  party,  seemed  unbearable.  They  felt 
that  they  might  better  have  endured  anything  had 
they  been  together.  Perhaps  it  was  well  for  the 
elder  two  that  their  attention  was  diverted  now  and 
again  by  the  effort  to  console  Fifine  in  a  minor 
distress,  for  with  the  ill-adjusted  sense  of  pro 
portion  peculiar  to  childhood  she  had  begun  to 
clamor  loudly  too  for  her  cat  —  her  mignonne,  her 
douce  fillet te  that  she  had  brought  so  far  in  her  arms 
or  on  her  back. 

Alas,  poor  Fifine!  to  learn  thus  early  how 
sharper  than  a  serpent's  tooth  it  is  to  have  a 
thankless  child !  For  indeed  Kitty  might  have 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  85 

seemed  to  lie  under  the  imputation  of  having 
merely  "  played  baby "  in  order  to  secure  free 
transportation.  At  all  events,  she  was  a  cat  now, 
the  only  one  in  the  fort,  and  for  all  she  knew  in 
the  settlement.  The  douce  mignonne  was  in  high 
elation,  now  walking  the  palisades,  now  peeping 
in  at  a  loop-hole  in  the  upper  story  of  one  of  the 
block-houses  where  a  sentinel  was  regularly  on 
guard,  being  able  to  scan  from  the  jutting  outlook 
not  only  the  exterior  of  the  fort  on  two  sides,  but  a 
vast  extent  of  darkling  country.  In  his  measured 
tramp  to  and  fro  in  the  shadowy  apartment  lighted 
only  by  the  glimmer  of  the  night  without,  he  sud 
denly  saw  a  flicker  at  the  loop-hole  he  was  approach 
ing,  caught  a  transient  glimpse  of  a  face,  the  gleam 
of  a  fiery  eye,  and  he  nearly  dropped  his  loaded 
firelock  in  amazement. 

"  By  George  !  "  he  exclaimed,  "  I  thought  that 
was  a  blarsted  cat !" 

He  had  not  seen  one  since  he  left  Charlestown 
a  year  before. 

He  walked  to  the  loop-hole  and  looked  far  down 
from  the  projecting  wall  and  along  the  parapet  of 
the  curtain  and  the  scarp  to  the  opposite  bastion 
with  its  tower-like  block-house. 

Nothing  —  all  quiet  as  the  grave  or  the  desert. 
He  could  hear  the  river  sing ;  he  could  see  in  the 
light  of  the  stars,  and  a  mere  fimder  of  a  moon, 


86  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

the  clods  of  earth  on  the  ground  below,  —  naught 
else.  For  the  douce  mignonne,  with  her  back  all 
handsomely  humped,  had  suddenly  sprung  aside  and 
fled  down  the  interior  slope  of  the  rampart  into  the 
parade  and  over  to  the  cook's  quarters  neighboring 
the  kitchen.  She  nosed  gleefully  about  among  pots 
and  kettles,  feeling  very  much  at  home  and  civilized 
to  the  verge  of  luxury ;  she  pried  stealthily,  every 
inch  a  cat,  into  the  arrangements  for  to-morrow's 
breakfast,  with  a  noiseless  step  and  a  breathless 
purr,  until  suddenly  a  tin  pan  containing  beans  was 
tumultuously  overturned,  being  within  the  line  of 
an  active  spring.  For  the  douce  fillette  had  caught 
a  mouse,  which  few  sweet  little  girls  are  capable 
of  doing  ;  —  a  regular  domestic  fireside  mouse,  a 
thing  which  the  douce  fillette  had  not  seen  in  many 
weeks. 

The  stir  in  the  neighboring  cabin  did  not  affright 
Kitty,  and  when  the  officers'  cook,  a  veritable  Afri 
can  negro,  suddenly  appeared  with  an  ebony  face  and 
the  rolling  whites  of  astonished  eyes,  she  exhibited 
her  capture  and  was  rewarded  by  a  word  of  com 
mendation  which  she  quite  understood,  although  it 
was  as  outlandish  as  the  gutturals  of  Willinawaugh. 

When  the  night  was  nearly  spent,  a  great  star, 
splendidly  blazing  in  the  sorceries  of  a  roseate 
haze,  seemed  to  conjure  into  the  blackness  a  cold 
glimmer  of  gray  light  above  the  high,  bleak,  ser- 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  87 

rated  summit  line  of  the  mountains  of  the  eastern 
horizon,  showing  here  and  there  white  blank  inter 
vals,  that  presently  were  revealed  as  stark  snowy 
domes  rising  into  the  wintry  silence  of  a  new  day. 
The  resonant  bugle  suddenly  sounded  the  reveille 
along  the  far  winding  curves  of  the  river,  rousing 
greetings  of  morning  from  many  a  mountain  crag, 
and  before  the  responsive  echoes  of  the  forest  were 
once  more  mute  the  parade  was  full  of  the  com 
motion  elicited  by  the  beating  of  the  drums ; 
shadowy  military  figures  were  falling  in  line,  and 
the  brisk  authoritative  ringing  voice  of  the  first 
sergeant  was  calling  the  roll  in  each  company. 

And  on  the  doorstep  of  Odalie's  cabin,  when 
Josephine  opened  the  door,  sat  the  douce  mignonne 
with  her  most  babified  expression  on  her  face,  now 
and  again  mewing  noiselessly,  going  through  the 
motions  of  grief,  and  cuddling  down  in  infantile 
style  when  with  wild  babbling  cries  of  endearment 
the  little  girl  swooped  up  maternally  the  renegade 
cat. 


CHAPTER    IV 

WITH  the  earliest  flush  of  dawn  Hamish 
MacLeod  was  seeking  one  of  the  officers 
in  order  to  solicit  a  guide  to  enable  him 
to  go  in  search  of  his  brother  with  some  chance 
of  success. 

Captain  Stuart,  whom  he  finally  found  at  the 
block-house  in  the  northwestern  bastion,  was  stand 
ing  on  the  broad  hearth  of  the  great  hall,  where 
the  fire  was  so  brightly  aflare  that  although  it  was 
day  the  place  had  all  the  illuminated  effect  of  its 
aspect  of  last  night.  The  officer's  fresh  face  was 
florid  and  tingling  from  a  recent  plunge  in  the  cold 
waters  of  the  Tennessee  River.  He  looked  at 
Hamish  with  an  unchanged  expression  of  his 
steady  blue  eye,  and  drawing  the  watch  from  his 
fob  consulted  it  minutely. 

"  The  hunters  of  the  post,"  he  said,  still  regard 
ing  it,  "  have  been  gone  for  more  than  half  an  hour. 
There  is  no  use  in  trying  to  overtake  them.  They 
have  their  orders  as  to  what  kind  of  game  they  are 
to  bring  in." 

88 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  89 

He  smiled  slightly,  with  the  air  of  a  man  who 
in  indulgent  condescension  would  humor  natural 
anxiety  and  overlook  the  effort  of  intermeddling, 
and  as  he  returned  the  watch  to  his  pocket,  Hamish 
felt  dismissed  from  the  presence.  The  sun  was 
well  over  the  great  range  of  purple  bronze  moun 
tains  in  the  east,  their  snowy  domes  a-glister  in  the 
brilliance  between  the  dark  slopes  below  and  the 
blue  sky  above,  and  the  fort,  as  he  came  forth,  was 
a  scene  of  brisk  activity.  The  parade  ground  had 
already  been  swept  like  a  floor,  and  groups  of 
soldiers  were  gathered  about  the  barracks  busily 
burnishing  and  cleaning  their  arms,  pipe-claying 
belts  and  rotten-stoning  buckles  and  buttons,  and 
at  the  further  end  near  the  stables  horses  were  in 
process  of  being  groomed  and  fed ;  one  of  them, 
young  and  wild,  broke  away,  and  in  a  mad  scamper, 
with  tossing  mane  and  tail,  and  head  erect  and 
hoofs  scattering  the  gravel,  plunged  around  and 
around  the  enclosure,  baffling  his  groom.  A  drill- 
sergeant  was  busy  with  an  awkward  squad ;  another 
squad  without  arms,  in  charge  of  a  corporal,  was 
marching  and  marching,  making  no  progress,  but 
vigorously  marking  time,  whether  for  exercise  or 
discipline  Hamish  could  hardly  determine,  for  he 
began  to  have  a  very  awesome  perception  of  the 
rigor  of  authority  maintained  in  this  frontier  post. 
He  had  noticed  —  and  the  gorge  of  a  freeman  had 


90  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

risen  at  the  sight  —  a  soldier  mounted  high  upon  a 
trestle,  facetiously  called  a  horse,  and  he  was  well 
aware  that  this  was  by  no  means  a  new  and  a  merry 
game.  Hamish  wavered  a  little  in  his  mental  revolt 
against  the  powers  that  be,  as  he  noticed  the  reckless 
devil-may-care  look  of  the  man.  He  was  a  ruddy 
young  fellow;  he  had  a  broad  visage,  with  a  wide, 
facetious  red-lipped  mouth,  a  quick,  blithe,  brown 
eye,  and  a  broad,  blunt  nose.  Hamish  knew  intui 
tively  that  this  was  the  typical  inhabitant,  the  native, 
so  to  speak,  of  the  guard-house;  his  sort  had  ridden 
the  wooden-horse,  for  many  a  weary  hour  in  every 
country  under  the  sun,  and  when  an  Indian's  toma 
hawk  or  a  Frenchman's  bullet  should  clear  the 
ranks  of  him,  the  gap  would  be  filled  by  a  successor 
so  like  him  in  spirit  that  he  might  seem  a  lineal 
descendant  instead  of  a  mere  successor  in  the  line. 
He  had  long  ago  been  dubbed  the  "  Devil's  Dra 
goon,"  and  he  looked  down  with  a  good-humored 
glance  at  a  bevy  of  his  comrades,  who  from  the 
door  of  the  nearest  log-cabin  covertly  cast  gibes  at 
him,  calling  out  sotto  voce,  "  Right  about  wheel  — 
Trot!  — March!" 

In  another  quarter  of  the  parade  the  regular 
exercise  was  in  progress,  and  Hamish  listened  with 
interest  to  the  voice  of  the  officer  as  it  rang  out 
crisp  and  clear  on  the  frosty  air. 

"Poise  — Firelock!" 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  91 

A  short  interval  while  the  sun  glanced  down  the 
gleaming  barrels  of  the  muskets. 

"Cock  — Firelock!" 

A  sharp  metallic  click  as  of  many  sounds  blent 
into  one. 

"Take  — Aim!" 

A  moment  of  suspense. 

"Fire!" 

A  resonant  detonation  of  blank  cartridges  —  and 
all  the  live  echoes  leaped  in  the  woods,  while  the 
smoke  drifted  about  the  parade  and  glimmered 
prismatic  in  the  sun,  and  then  cleared  away,  escap 
ing  over  the  ramparts  and  blending  with  the  timor 
ous  dissolving  mists  of  the  morning. 

Several  Indians  had  come  in  through  the  open 
gate,  some  arrayed  in  feather  or  fur  match-coats  and 
others  in  buckskin  shirt  and  leggings,  with  their 
blankets  purchased  from  the  traders  drawn  up 
about  their  ears;  they  were  standing  near  the 
walls  of  one  of  the  block-houses  to  see  the  drill. 
A  certain  expectancy  hung  upon  this  group  as  they 
watched  the  movements  of  the  men  now  loading 
anew. 

"  Half-cock  —  Firelock  !  "  came  the  order  in  the 
peremptory  voice  of  the  officer. 

Once  more  that  sharp,  metallic,  unnerving  click. 

"Handle  — Cartridge!" 

A  sudden  swift  facial  expression  went  along  the 


92  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

line  with  a  formidable  effect.  With  the  simultane 
ous  show  of  strong  teeth  it  was  as  if  each  soldier  had 
fiercely  snarled  like  a  wild  beast.  But  each  had  only 
bitten  the  end  of  the  cartridge. 

"  Prime  !  " 

The  eyes  of  the  Indians  followed  with  an  unwink 
ing,  fascinated  stare  the  swift,  simultaneous  move 
ment  of  the  rank  as  of  one  man,  every  muscle 
animated  by  the  same  impulse. 

"Shut  — Pan!" 

Once  more  the  single  sound  as  of  many  sounds. 

"  Charge  with  —  Cartridge  !  " 

The  watchful  eyes  of  the  Indians  narrowed. 

"  Draw  —  Rammer  !" 

Once  more  the  loud,  sharp,  clash  of  metal  rising 
to  a  menace  of  emphasis  with  the  succeeding,  — 

"  Ram  down  —  Cartridge  !  " 

"  Return  —  Rammer  !  " 

And  as  hard  upon  the  clatter  of  the  ramrods, 
slipping  back  into  their  grooves,  came  the  orders  — 

"Shoulder  — Firelock!" 

"Advance  —  Arms!"  the  Cherokees  drew  a  long 
breath  as  of  the  relief  from  the  tension  of  suspense. 
They  were  evidently  seeking  to  discern  the  utility 
of  these  strange  military  gyrations.  This  the  In 
dians,  although  always  alert  to  perceive  and  adopt 
any  advantage  in  arms  or  military  method,  despite 
their  characteristic  tenacity  to  their  ancient  customs 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  93 

in  other  matters,  could  not  descry.  They  had, 
even  at  this  early  day,  almost  discarded  the  bow 
and  arrow  for  the  firelock,  wherever  or  however  it 
could  be  procured,  but  the  elaborate  details  of  the 
drill  baffled  them,  and  they  regarded  it  as  in  some 
sort  a  mystery.  Their  own  discipline  had  always 
sufficed,  and  their  military  manoeuvres,  their  march 
in  single  file  or  widely  extended  lines,  their  skulking 
approach,  stalking  under  cover  from  tree  to  tree, 
were  better  suited,  as  even  some  of  their  enemies 
thought,  for  military  movements,  than  tactical  pre 
cision,  to  the  broken  character  of  the  country  and 
the  dense  forest  of  the  trackless  wilderness. 

They  noticed  with  kindling  eyes  a  brisk  repri 
mand  administered  to  Corporal  O'Flynn,  when 
Lieutenant  Gilmore  called  attention  to  the  fact 
that  one  of  the  men  had  used  three  motions 
instead  of  the  prescribed  two  motions  in  charging 
with  cartridge,  and  two  motions,  instead  of  one,  in 
ramming  down  cartridge.  Corporal  O'Flynn's 
mortification  was  painted  in  a  lively  red  on  his  fresh 
Irish  cheek,  for  this  soldier  was  of  a  squad  whose 
tuition  in  the  manual  exercise  had  been  superin 
tended  by  no  less  a  tactician  than  himself. 

"  Faith,  sir,"  he  said  to  his  superior  officer,  "  I 
don't  know  what  ails  that  man.  He  has  motion 
without  intelligence.  Like  thim  windmills,  ye'll 
remember,  sir,  v/e  seen  so  much  on  the  Continent. 


94  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

He  minds   me   o'   thim    in    the  way  he  whur-r-ls 
his  ar-rms." 

The  lieutenant  —  they  had  served  together  in 
foreign  countries  —  laughed  a  trifle,  his  wrath  di 
verted  by  the  farcical  suggestion,  and  the  instant 
the  command  to  break  ranks  had  been  given,  Cor 
poral  O'Flynn,  with  the  delinquent  under  close 
guard,  convoyed  him  to  the  scene  of  the  exploits 
of  the  awkward  squad,  where  he  might  best  learn 
to  discard  the  free  gestures  of  the  windmills  of  the 
Continent  of  Europe. 

cc  To  disgrace  me  afore  the  officers,"  said  Corporal 
O'Flynn,  "and  I  fairly  responsible  for  ye!  I  lamed 
ye  all  ye  know  —  and  for  ye  to  show  the  leftenant 
how  little  'tis  !  YeVe  got  to  quit  that  way  of  load 
ing  with  ca'tridge  with  as  many  motions  as  an  old 
jontleman  feeling  for  his  snuff-box  !  I'm  fairly  re 
sponsible  for  yez.  I'm  yer  sponsor  in  this  business. 
I  feel  like  yer  godfathers,  an'  yer  godmothers,  an' 
yer  maiden  aunt.  I  never  seen  a  man  so  supple ! 
Ye  have  as  much  use  of  yer  hands  as  if  ye  was  a 
centipede !  " 

The  matter  and  manner  of  this  discourse  tried 
the  gravity  of  the  awkward  squad,  but  no  one  dared 
to  laugh,  and  Corporal  O'Flynn  himself  was  as 
grave  as  if  it  were  a  question  of  the  weightiest 
importance  involved,  as  he  stood  by  and  watched 
for  a  time  the  drill  of  the  men. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  95 

The  Indians  turned  their  attentive  eyes  to  Cap 
tain  Stuart  and  Captain  Demere,  who  were  both 
upon  the  terre-pleine  at  the  shoulder-point  of  a  bas 
tion  where  one  of  the  twelve  cannon,  mounted  en 
barbette,  looked  grimly  forth  over  the  parapet. 
The  gunners  were  receiving  some  instructions 
which  Stuart  was  giving  in  reference  to  serving 
the  piece ;  now  and  again  it  was  pointed  anew ;  he 
handled  the  heavy  sponge-staff  as  if  in  illustration; 
then  stepped  swiftly  back,  and  lifted  the  match,  as 
if  about  to  fire  the  gun.  The  Indians  loitering 
in  the  shade  watched  the  martial  figure,  the  sun 
striking  full  on  the  red  coat  and  cocked  hat,  and 
long,  heavy  queue  of  fair  hair  hanging  on  his 
shoulders,  and  as  he  stood  erect,  with  the  sponge- 
staff  held  horizontally  in  both  hands,  they  turned 
and  looked  with  a  common  impulse  at  one  an 
other  and  suddenly  spat  upon  the  ground.  The 
sentry  in  a  sort  of  cabin  above  the  gate  —  a  gate 
house,  so  to  speak  —  maintained  a  guard  within  as 
well  as  without,  for  an  outer  sentinel  was  posted 
on  the  crest  of  the  counterscarp  beyond  the  bridge ; 
he  kept  his  eye  on  the  Cherokees,  but  he  did  not 
note  their  look.  He  was  not  skilled  in  deciphering 
facial  expression,  nor  did  he  conceive  himself  de 
puted  to  construe  the  grimaces  of  savages.  Gaz 
ing  without  for  a  moment,  he  turned  back  and  cast 
a  glance  of  kindly  concern  on  Hamish  MacLeod, 


96  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

who  was  disconsolately  strolling  about,  not  daring 
to  go  back  and  encounter  the  reproaches  of  Odalie, 
who  doubtless  thought  him  even  now  in  the  wilder 
ness  with  a  searching  party,  too  urgent  to  admit  of 
the  time  to  acquaint  her  with  so  hasty  a  departure 
—  and  yet  striving  against  his  eagerness  to  go  on 
this  very  errand,  relying  on  the  superior  wisdom  of 
the  officers  even  while  rebelling  against  it.  All 
that  he  observed  tended  to  confirm  this  reliance. 
How  safe  it  was  here !  How  trebly  guarded ! 
Even  to  his  callow  experience  it  was  most  obvious 
that  whatever  fate  held  in  store  for  this  garrison, 
whose  lives  were  intrusted  to  the  wisdom  and  pre 
caution  of  the  commandant,  surprise  was  not 
among  the  possibilities.  He  remembered  anew 
poor  Sandy,  far  from  these  stanch  walls,  the 
very  citadel  of  security,  within  which  he  felt  so 
recreant ;  and  as  he  thought  again  of  the  perils  to 
which  his  brother  was  exposed,  and  a  possibly  im 
pending  hideous  fate,  he  felt  a  constriction  about 
his  throat  like  the  clutch  of  a  hand.  The  tears 
rose  to  his  eyes  —  and  through  them  as  he  looked 
toward  the  gate  he  saw  Sandy  coming  into  the  fort ! 
In  the  extremity  of  the  revulsion  of  feeling  Hamish 
gave  a  sudden  shrill  yell  that  rang  through  the 
woods  like  a  war-whoop.  Even  the  Indians,  still 
loitering  in  the  diminishing  shadow  of  the  block 
house,  started  at  the  sound  and  gazed  at  him  amazed, 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  97 

as  he  dashed  across  the  parade  and  flung  his  arms 
around  his  brother.  Sandy,  who  had  had  his  own 
terrors  to  endure  concerning  the  fate  of  his  family, 
was  not  altogether  appreciative  of  their  terrors  for 
his  sake.  He  felt  amply  capable  of  taking  care  of 
himself,  and  if  he  were  not  —  why,  his  scalp  was 
not  worth  saving  !  He  extricated  himself  with  un- 
flattered  surprise  from  Hamish's  frantic  embrace 
that  was  like  the  frenzied  hug  of  a  young  bear  and 
made  his  ribs  crack. 

"  That's  enough,  Hamish ;  that's  enough  ! "  he 
said.  "Of  course  I'm  safe,  all  right.  That's 
enough." 

He  advanced  with  what  grace  he  could  command 
after  such  an  exhibition  to  shake  hands  with  the 
two  officers  near  the  sally-port  and  thank  them  for 
the  shelter  the  fort  had  afforded  his  family. 

And  here  was  Odalie, — for  a  good-natured  soldier, 
one  of  the  boat's  crew  of  the  previous  evening, 
had  instantly  run  to  her  cabin  with  the  news  of 
the  arrival  —  restored  to  her  normal  poise  in  an 
instant,  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye,  by  the  shatter 
ing  of  her  dismal  forebodings  in  the  glad  reality  of 
MacLeod's  safety.  So  composed  was  her  manner, 
so  calmly  happy,  that  Captain  Stuart  could  not  for 
bear  to  unmask  the  sham,  and  let  the  poor  man 
know  how  he  had  been  bewept  yesterday  at  even. 

"  We  were  very  glad  to  take  in  the  wanderers, 


98  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

although  I  cannot  say  it  was  a  cheerful  scene. 
I  never  realized  until  Mrs.  MacLeod  reached  the 
gate  here  the  meaning  of  the  phrase  c  dissolved  in 
tears/  " 

Alexander  looked  anxiously  at  his  wife  —  had  she 
found  the  journey,  then,  so  vexatious  ? 

"  I  was  tired  and  dusty,"  she  said  demurely,  as 
if  in  explanation.  "  My  shoes  —  one  of  them  was 
in  tatters ;  and,  Sandy,  I  was  so  ashamed.'* 

Captain  Stuart  stared  at  her  for  a  moment  and 
broke  into  a  laugh.  "  That's  putting  the  shoe  on 
the  other  foot,  at  all  events,"  he  said. 

He  and  Captain  Demere,  accompanied  by  the 
newcomer,  turned  into  the  block-house,  in  order 
to  question  Sandy  as  to  any  information  he  might 
have  been  able  to  acquire  concerning  French 
emissaries,  the  disposition  of  the  Cherokees,  the 
devastation  of  the  Virginia  settlements,  and  any 
further  news  of  General  Forbes  and  the  fall  of 
Fort  Duquesney  now  called  Fort  Pitt.  However, 
Sandy  had  naught  to  report,  save  the  angry  threat 
with  the  tomahawk  which  gave  way  upon  the 
assurance  that  the  party  was  French.  In  the 
solitary  journey  with  those  who  had  resigned  their 
boat  to  Willinawaugh,  he  had  experienced  no  worse 
treatment  than  the  destruction  of  his  pocket 
compass.  With  this  at  first  they  had  been  highly 
delighted,  but  some  ten  miles  from  the  fort  they 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  99 

had  been  joined  by  an  Indian  who  declared  he  had 
seen  such  things  in  Carolina,  doubtless  among 
land-surveyors,  and  who  stigmatized  it  as  a  "  land- 
stealer,"  forthwith  crushing  it  with  his  tomahawk. 
MacLeod  had  expected  this  revelation  to  bring 
about  ill-feeling,  but  the  party  shortly  met  the 
hunters  of  the  post,  who  had  insisted  on  conducting 
him  to  the  fort  on  suspicion  of  being  a  Frenchman. 
These  pioneers  never  forgot  that  day,  a  rich, 
languid  day  of  the  lingering  St.  Martin's  summer- 
tide.  What  though  in  the  early  morn  the  frost  had 
lain  in  rime  as  white  as  snow  on  the  bare  branches  of 
the  great  trees  where  now  the  yellow  sunshine  dripped 
in  liquid  light !  A  tender  haze  like  that  of  spring 
suffused  the  depths  of  the  forest,  the  gleaming, 
glancing  reaches  of  the  river,  the  level  summit- 
lines  of  the  great  massive  purple  mountains  of  the 
west,  and  half  concealed,  and  shifting  half  revealed, 
always  elusively,  the  fine  azure  snow-capped  domes 
against  the  pearl-tinted  eastern  sky.  What  though 
the  flowers  were  dead,  the  leaves  had  fled,  the 
woods  were  bare  and  rifled, — when  the  necromancy 
of  the  powers  of  the  air  filled  all  the  winter  day 
with  sweet,  subtle  odors  that  excelled  the  fragrance 
of  summer,  as  a  memory  might  outvie  the  value 
of  the  reality,  seeming  to  exhale  now  from  the 
forest,  and  again  from  the  river,  and  anon  from 
some  quality  of  the  beneficent  sunshine,  or  to  exist 


ioo          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

in  ethereal  suspension  in  the  charmed  atmosphere. 
Nature  was  in  such  blessed  harmony,  full  of  grace 
ful  analogy ;  a  bird  would  wing  his  way  aloft,  his 
shadow  careering  through  the  sun-painted  woods 
below;  a  canoe  with  its  swift  duplication  in  the  water 
would  fly  with  its  paddles  like  unfeathered  wings 
down  the  currents  of  the  river ;  those  exquisite 
traceries  of  the  wintry  woods,  the  shadows  of  the 
leafless  trees,  would  lie  on  a  sandy  stretch  like  some 
keen  etching,  as  if  to  illustrate  the  perfection  of  the 
lovely  dendroidal  design  and  proportion  of  the 
growth  it  imaged;  now  and  again  the  voice  of 
herds  of  buffalo  rose  thunderously,  muffled  by 
distance ;  a  deer  splashed  into  the  river  a  little 
above  the  fort,  and  gallantly  breasting  the  current, 
swam  to  the  other  side,  while  a  group  of  soldiers 
standing  on  the  bank  watched  his  progress  and 
commented  on  his  prowess.  No  shot  followed  him  ; 
the  larders  were  filled,  and  orders  had  been  given 
to  waste  no  powder  and  ball. 

The  newcomers  were  made  most  heartily  welcome 
in  the  settlement  near  the  fort,  as  newcomers  were 
apt  to  be  in  every  pioneer  hamlet,  whatever  their 
quality  ;  for  the  frontiersmen,  in  their  exposed  situa 
tion,  earnestly  appreciated  the  strength  in  numbers. 
But  this  gratulation  was  of  course  infinitely  increased 
when  the  arrivals  were,  like  these,  people  of  character, 
evidently  so  valuable  an  addition  to  the  community. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          101 

Finally  several  of  the  settlers  persisted  in  carrying 
off  Sandy  to  look  at  a  fertile  nook  where  the  river 
swung  round  in  a  bend,  earnestly  recommending 
the  rich  bottom  lands  for  the  growth  of  corn,  and 
the  crest  of  the  hill  with  a  clear  free-stone  spring 
for  that  home  he  sought  to  plant  in  the  far  west. 
Hamish  went  too,  —  he  could  not  bear  Sandy  to  be 
out  of  his  sight  and  was  cc  tagging "  after  him  as 
resolutely  and  as  unshake-off-ably  as  when  he  was 
four  and  Sandy  was  twelve  years  of  age. 

In  their  absence  Odalie  and  Josephine  and  the 
douce  mignonne  sat  on  the  doorstep  of  their  latest 
entertainer,  and  watched  the  shadows  and  sunshine 
shift  in  the  woods,  and  listened  to  the  talk  of  their 
hostess.  And  here  was  where  the  trail  of  the  ser 
pent  began  to  be  manifest ;  for  this  old  woman 
was  a  professed  gossip,  and  Odalie  speedily  learned 
the  points  of  view  from  which  the  settlement  about 
Fort  Loudon  ceased  to  present  the  aspect  of  the 
earlier  Paradisaic  era. 

Mrs.  Raising  had  a  hard,  set  visage,  and  was 
very  shrewd,  —  none  the  worse  gossip  for  that,  — 
and  went  straight  to  the  weak  point,  and  unraveled 
the  tangle  of  mystery  in  any  subject  that  presented 
itself  for  discussion.  She  was  thin  and  angular  and 
uncultivated,  and  had  evidently  come  of  people 
who  had  been  used  to  small  advantages  in  educa 
tion  and  breeding.  Equally  humble  of  origin  was 


IO2          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

another  of  Odalie's  future  neighbors,  with  a  sort 
of  homespun  dress  made  after  the  fashion  called  a 
"  short  gown,"  a  red  petticoat,  and  a  pair  of  moc- 
casons  in  lieu  of  shoes.  Her  face  was  as  broad  as 
the  moon,  and  as  bland.  Much  smiling  had  worn 
dimples  around  her  mouth  instead  of  wrinkles  in 
her  forehead.  She,  too,  had  a  keen  gleam  of  dis 
cernment  in  her  eyes,  but  tempered  with  a  percep 
tion  of  the  sweetly  ludicrous  in  life,  which  converted 
folly  into  the  semblance  of  fun.  She  seemed  to  love 
her  comfort,  to  judge  by  her  leisurely  motions  and 
the  way  her  arms  fell  into  easy  foldings,  but  the  wife 
of  a  pioneer  could  never  have  lived  at  ease  in  those 
days.  She  sat  opposite  Mrs.  Raising,  by  the  cabin 
door,  on  a  bench  which  the  hostess  had  vacated  in 
her  favor,  adopting  instead  an  inverted  tub,  and 
although  admitting  as  true  much  that  was  said, 
Mrs.  Beedie  advanced  palliating  theories  which, 
paradoxically  enough,  while  they  did  not  contradict 
the  main  statement,  had  all  the  effect  of  denial. 

For  her  part,  said  Mrs.  Raising,  she  did  not  see 
what  anybody  who  was  safe  in  Virginia  or  Carolina, 
or  anywhere  else,  would  come  to  this  country  for. 
She  wouldn't,  except  that  her  husband  was  pos 
sessed!  The  sight  of  a  road  put  him  into  a 
"trembly  fit."  He  was  moving  west  to  get  rid  of 
civilization,  and  he  was  as  uncivilized  as  a  "  bar 
himself,  or  an  Injun." 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          103 

Odalie  learned  that  a  number  of  the  men  were 
wild,  roving,  roaring  fellows,  who  came  here  because 
they  hated  law  and  order ;  then,  without  contradic 
tion,  Mrs.  Beedie's  exposition  tended  to  show  that 
it  was  a  new  country  with  splendid  prospects  and 
they  desired  to  take  advantage  of  its  opening  oppor 
tunities  ;  some  of  them  being  already  poor,  sought 
here  cheaper  homes,  with  more  chance  for  devel 
opment. 

And,  pursuing  the  interpretation  of  her  side  of 
the  shield,  Mrs.  Raising  detailed  the  fact  that 
some  people  love  change  and  adventure,  because 
no  matter  what  the  Lord  gave  'em  they  wouldn't 
fold  their  hands  and  be  thankful.  Were  the  Rush 
people  poor  and  oppressed  in  Carolina  ?  Mighty 
well  off,  they  seemed  to  her — had  cows,  if  the  wolves 
hadn't  got  'em,  and  had  owned  property  and  held 
their  heads  mighty  high  where  they  came  from, 
and  claimed  kin  with  well-to-do  people  in  England. 
People  said  Captain  Stuart  said  he  knew  who  they 
were  —  but  the  Lord  only  knew  what  Captain  Stuart 
knew !  Then  Mrs.  Raising  further  unfolded  the 
fact  that  Mrs  Rush's  husband  had  been  the  son  of 
a  bishop,  but  had  got  among  the  dissenters,  and 
had  been  cast  out  like  a  prodigal,  because  he  took 
to  preaching. 

"  Preachin'  being  in  the  blood,  I  reckon,"  Mrs. 
Beedie  palliated. 


IO4          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

Thereupon  he  emigrated  to  America  and  was 
seized  with  a  mission  to  the  Indians,  that  fastened 
upon  him  like  a  plague ;  and  he  lost  his  scalp  and 
his  life  —  not  even  a  red  Indian  would  tolerate  the 
doctrine  he  set  up  as  the  Word  !  And  Mrs.  Hal- 
sing  pursed  her  lips  with  a  truly  orthodox  fixity. 
And  now  we  have  no  religion  at  the  fort  and  the 
settlement. 

But  here  Mrs.  Beedie  took  up  her  testimony  with 
unction  and  emphasis.  We  had  Captain  Stuart ! 

Mrs.  Halsing  gave  a  sudden  cry  of  derision  like 
the  abrupt  squawk  of  a  jay-bird.  Captain  Stuart 
was  not  a  humble  man.  That  back  of  his  was 
never  bent !  She  wondered  if  his  heart  had  ever 
felt  the  need  of  aught. 

"Yes/'  Mrs.  Beedie  affirmed.  "When  one  of  the 
soldiers  died  of  the  pleurisy  last  winter  in  the  fort 
and  Captain  Demere  was  ill  himself,  Captain  Stuart 
read  the  service  all  solemn  and  proper,  and  had  men 
to  march  with  arms  reversed  and  fire  a  volley  over 
the  grave." 

Mrs.  Halsing  rose  to  the  occasion  by  demanding 
what  good  such  evidences  of  religion  might  do  in 
such  a  lot  as  there  was  at  the  fort.  Forgetting  her 
scorn  of  the  bishop's  son,  who  had  taken  to  Meth 
odism  and  Indians,  she  set  forth  the  fact  that  the 
whole  settlement  was  given  to  dances  —  that  the 
settlers  with  their  wives  and  daughters,  not  content 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          105 

with  dances  at  home,  must  needs  go  to  the  fort  on 
state  and  special  occasions,  such  as  Christmas,  and 
there  participate  in  the  ball,  as  they  called  it,  given 
in  the  officers'  mess-hall.  They  went  in  daylight, 
and  did  not  return  till  daylight,  and  the  fiddle  it 
sang  the  whole  night  through!  And  cards — the 
soldiers  played  cards,  and  the  settlers  too ;  and  the 
officers,  they  played  "  loo,'*  as  they  called  it,  as  if 
that  made  it  any  better.  Even  Captain  Demere  ! 
This  latter  phrase  occurred  so  frequently  in  Mrs. 
Halsing's  prelection  that  it  created  a  sort  of  miti 
gating  effect,  and  made  the  enormity  it  qualified 
gain  a  trifle  of  respectability  from  the  fact  that 
Captain  Demere  countenanced  it.  Odalie  knew  al 
ready  that  he  was  the  commandant,  and  it  was  plain 
to  be  seen  that  Captain  Demere  stood  first  in  Mrs. 
Halsing's  estimation.  And  the  officers  all,  she 
declared,  the  captains,  the  frisky  lieutenants,  and 
the  ensigns,  all  drank  tafia. 

"  When  they  can  git  it,"  interpolated  Mrs.  Bee- 
die,  with  twinkling  eyes. 

"  They  are  deprived,  I  will  say,  by  the  slowness 
and  seldomness  of  the  express  from  over  the  moun 
tains.  But  if  they  are  a  sober  set,  it  is  against  their 
will,  and  that  I  do  maintain,"  Mrs.  Raising  added, 
turning  an  unflinching  front  toward  Mrs.  Beedie. 
Then  resuming  her  dissertation  to  Odalie  :  — 

"  But  there's  one  thing  that  rests  on  my  mind. 


106          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Lou  don 

I  can't  decide  which  one  it  belongs  to,  Captain 
Stuart  or  Captain  Demere.  Did  ye  see  —  I  know 
ye  did — a  lady's  little  riding-mask  on  the  shelf  of 
the  great  hall.  Ye  must  have  seen  it,"  —  lowering 
her  voice,  —  "a  love  token ?  " 

"  Oh,"  said  Odalie,  in  a  casual  tone  and  with  a 
slight  shrug  of  the  shoulders,  not  relishing  the 
intrusive  turn  of  the  disquisition,  "  a  souvenir,  per 
haps,  from  the  colonies  or  over  seas." 

"  La,  now  !  "  cried  Mrs.  Raising,  baffled  and  dis 
concerted,  "  you're  as  French  as  a  frog  !  " 

Recovering  herself,  she  resumed  quickly.  "  It's 
the  deceitfulness  of  Captain  Stuart  that  sets  me  agin 
him.  Ye  must  be  obleeged  to  know  he  can't  abide 
the  Injuns.  He  keeps  watch  day  and  night  agin 
'em.  Yet  they  think  everything  o'  Captain  Stuart! 
They  all  prize  him.  Now  don't  ye  know  such 
wiles  as  he  hev  got  for  them  must  be  deceit  ? " 

Odalie  made  an  effort  to  say  something  about 
magnetism,  but  it  seemed  inadequate  to  express  the 
officer's  bonhomie,  when  Mrs.  Halsing  continued  : 

"Ye  never  know  how  to  take  Captain  Stuart," 
she  objected.  "  Before  folks  he'll  behave  to  Cap 
tain  Demere  as  ceremonious  and  polite  as  if  they 
had  just  met  yesterday ;  but  if  you  hear  them  talk 
ing  off  together,  in  another  minute  he'll  be  rollick 
ing  around  as  wild  as  a  buck,  and  calling  him 
<Quawl_I  say  Quawl!'" 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          107 

She  evidently  resented  this  familiarity  to  the 
dignified  officer,  and  Odalie  pondered  fruitlessly 
on  the  possible  ridicule  involved  in  being  called 
"  Quawl." 

In  this  remote  frontier  fort  a  strong  personal 
friendship  had  sprung  up  between  the  two  senior 
officers  which  not  only  promoted  harmony  in  their 
own  relations,  but  a  unanimity  of  sentiment  in  the 
exertion  of  authority  that  redoubled  its  force,  for 
the  garrison  was  thus  debarred  from  the  support  on 
a  vexed  question  of  the  suspicion  of  a  dissentient 
mind  in  high  quarters.  Stuart  had  chanced  to  ad 
dress  his  friend  as  "  Paul,"  in  a  fraternal  aside  on  an 
unofficial  occasion,  and  one  or  two  of  the  Indians 
overhearing  it,  and  unaccustomed  to  the  ceremony  of 
a  surname,  had  thus  accosted  him,  —  to  Stuart's  de 
light  in  the  incongruity  that  this  familiarity  should  be 
offered  to  the  unapproachable  Demere,  rather  than 
to  himself,  whose  jovial  methods  might  better  war 
rant  the  slack  use  of  a  Christian  name.  Moreover, 
"  Paul  "  was  transmogrified  as  "  Quawl,"  the  Chero- 
kees  never  definitely  pronouncing  the  letter  P ;  and 
thereafter  in  moments  of  expansive  jollity  Stuart 
permitted  himself  the  liberty  of  imitation  in  saying 
"Quawl,"  and  sometimes  "Captain  Quawl." 

As  Odalie  puzzled  over  this  enigma,  Mrs.  Hal- 
sing  became  more  personal  still,  having  noticed  dur 
ing  the  pause  the  crystal  clearness  of  her  visitor's 


io8          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

eyes,  the  fairness  of  her  complexion,  the  delicacy  of 
her  beauty,  her  refinement,  and  the  subtle  sugges 
tion  of  elegance  that  appertained  to  her  manner, 
and  — 

"  How  old  be  you  ? "  asked  Mrs.  Raising, 
bluntly. 

"Twenty-one,"  replied  Odalie,  feeling  very  re 
sponsible  and  matronly. 

"Child,"  said  Mrs.  Raising,  solemnly,  "why 
did  you  ever  come  to  the  frontier  ? " 

"  We  were  lacking  somewhat  in  this  world's 
goods.  And  we  wish  to  make  a  provision  for  our 
little  girl.  We  are  young  and  don't  care  for  priva 
tion." 

"You  ain't  fitten  for  the  frontier." 

"  I  walked  all  the  way  here  from  New  River," 
cried  Odalie,  "and  not  by  the  direct  route,  either  — 
not  by  the  old  c  Warrior's  Path.'  We  came  by  way 
of  the  setting  sun,  as  Willinawaugh  has  it." 

"  You  can't  work,"  Mrs.  Raising's  eyes  narrowed 
as  she  measured  the  figure,  slight  and  delicate  despite 
its  erect  alertness. 

"I  can  spin  two  hanks  of  yarn  a  day,  six  cuts  to 
the  hank,"  boasted  Odalie.  "  I  can  weave  seven 
yards  of  woolen  cloth  a  day  —  my  linen  is  all  ten 
hundred.  And  I  can  hoe  corn  like  a  squaw." 

"That's  what  you'll  be  in  this  country  —  a 
squaw !  All  women  are.  You'll  have  to  hoe  all 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          109 

the  corn  you  can  plant."  Mrs.  Raising  shook  her 
head  mournfully  from  side  to  side.  "  I'd  like  to 
see  the  coast  towns  agin.  If  I  was  as  young  as 
you  I'd  not  tarry,  I'd  not  tarry  in  the  wilderness." 

Odalie  was  all  unaffected  by  her  arguments,  but 
this  talk,  so  deadly  to  the  progressive  spirit  of  the 
pioneer  settlements,  and  so  rife  then  and  later,  was, 
she  knew,  inimical  to  content.  The  disaffection  of 
those  who  remained  to  complain  wrought  more  evil 
against  the  permanence  of  the  settlements  than  the 
desertion  of  the  few  who  quitted  the  frontier  to 
return  to  the  towns  of  the  provinces.  She  wel 
comed,  therefore,  with  ardor  the  reappearance  of 
Sandy  and  Hamish  from  their  tour  of  investigation 
of  the  site  of  their  new  home,  and  her  eyes  sparkled 
responsively  as  she  noted  their  enthusiasm.  She 
was  glad  to  be  again  hanging  on  Sandy's  right  arm, 
while  Hamish  hung  on  his  left,  and  Fifine,  with 
her  fillet lte  toute  cberie,  toddled  on  in  front. 

Very  cheerful  the  fort  looked  to  Odalie  as  they 
approached.  The  afternoon  dress-parade  was  on. 
The  men  were  once  more  in  full  uniform,  instead 
of  the  pioneer  garb  of  buckskin  shirt  and  leggings 
and  moccasons  which  had  won  such  universal  ap 
proval,  and  was  so  appropriate  to  general  use  that 
it  was  almost  recognized  as  a  fatigue  uniform.  The 
sun  was  reddening  upon  the  still  redder  ranks  of 
scarlet  coats  that  took  even  a  higher  grade  of  color 


no         The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

from  the  effect  of  the  white  belts  and  the  burnished 
metallic  glitter  of  the  gun-barrels.  A  different  effect 
was  afforded  by  the  dress  of  a  small  body  of  militia 
from  the  provinces  that  had  recently  reinforced  the 
garrison,  whose  dark  blue  had  a  rich  but  subsidiary 
tone  and  abated  the  glare  of  the  ranks  of  scarlet, 
even  while  heightening  the  contrast.  The  Indians, 
always  gathering  from  their  towns  up  the  river  to 
revel  in  this  feast  of  color  and  spectacle  of  military 
pomp,  so  calculated  to  impress  them  with  the  su 
perior  capacity  and  knowledge  of  the  arts  of  war 
fare  possessed  by  the  white  race,  had  mustered  in 
stronger  numbers  than  usual  and  stood  in  rows 
about  the  walls  of  the  block-houses  or  along  the 
interior  slopes  of  the  rampart. 

In  groups  near  the  gate  were  some  of  the  Chero 
kee  women,  huddled  in  blankets,  although  one 
wore  a  civilized  "  short  gown  "  that  had  a  curiously 
unrelated  look  to  her  physiognomy  and  form. 
Their  countenances  were  dull  and  lack-luster,  and 
the  elder  hag-like  and  hideous,  but  as  the  new  set 
tlers  passed  the  group  of  squaws  a  broadside  of 
bright  black  eyes,  a  fresh,  richly  tinted,  expression 
less,  young  face,  and  a  string  of  red  beads  above  a 
buckskin  garb  that  was  a  sort  of  tunic,  half  shirt, 
half  skirt,  only  partly  revealed  by  the  strait  folds 
of  a  red  blanket  girt  about  a  slender,  erect  figure, 
reminded  the  observant  Odalie  of  the  claim  to  a 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          in 

certain  sort  of  beauty  arrogated  for  the  youthful 
among  these  denizens  of  the  woods  —  a  short-lived 
beauty,  certainly. 

Fifine  had  caught  sight  of  other  children,  the 
families  of  the  settlers  having  gathered  here  to  wit 
ness  the  parade.  Here,  too,  were  many  of  the  men; 
now  a  hunter,  leaning  on  his  rifle,  with  a  string  of 
quail,  which  he  called  "  pat-ridges,"  tied  to  one  an 
other  with  thongs  detached  from  the  fringes  of  his 
buckskin  shirt  and  looking  themselves  like  some 
sort  of  feathered  ornament,  as  they  hung  over  his 
shoulder  and  almost  to  his  knee,  and  a  brace  of  wild 
turkeys,  young  and  tender,  at  his  belt;  another, 
attracted  from  the  field  by  the  military  music  and 
the  prospect  of  the  rendezvous  of  the  whole  settle 
ment,  still  carried  a  long  sharp  knife  over  his  shoul 
der,  with  which  he  had  been  cutting  cane,  clearing 
new  ground.  A  powerful  fellow  leaning  on  an  ax 
was  exhibiting  to  another  and  an  older  settler  a  frag 
ment  of  wood  he  had  brought,  and  both  examined 
with  interest  the  fiber ;  this  was  evidently  a  dis 
covery,  the  tree  being  unknown  in  the  eastern 
section,  for  these  people  were  as  if  transplanted  to  a 
new  world. 

Odalie's  attention  was  suddenly  arrested  by  a 
man  of  gigantic  build,  wearing  the  usual  buckskin 
garb,  and  with  a  hard,  stern,  fierce  face,  that  seemed 
somehow  peculiarly  bare ;  he  wore  no  queue,  it  is 


ii2          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

true,  for  at  this  period  many  of  the  hunters  cut 
their  hair  for  convenience,  and  only  the  conservative 
retained  that  expression  of  civilization.  Under  his 
coonskin  cap  his  head  was  tied  up  in  a  red  cot 
ton  handkerchief,  and  as  he  stood  leaning  against 
the  red-clay  wall  of  the  rampart,  talking  gravely 
to  another  settler,  the  children  swarmed  up  the 
steep  interior  slope  of  the  fortifications  behind 
him  and  from  this  coign  of  vantage  busied  them 
selves,  without  let  or  hindrance,  in  pulling  off  his 
cap,  untying  the  handkerchief,  and  with  shrill  cries 
of  excitement  and  interest  exposing  to  view  the  bare 
poll.  For  the  man  had  been  scalped  and  yet  had 
escaped  with  his  life. 

"  £)uelle  barbarie !  Oh,  quelle  barbarie !  "  mur 
mured  Odalie,  wincing  at  the  sight. 

Years  ago  it  must  have  chanced,  for  the  wounds 
had  healed ;  but  it  had  left  terrible  scars  which  the 
juvenile  element  of  the  settlement  prized  and  loved 
to  trace  as  one  might  the  map  of  the  promised  land, 
were  such  charts  known  to  mere  earthly  map- 
makers.  A  frequent  ceremony,  this,  evidently, 
for  the  shrill  cries  were  of  recognition  rather  than 
discovery,  and  when  the  unknown  became  a  feature 
it  was  as  a  matter  of  speculation. 

"  Here  !  here  !  "  exclaimed  one  wiry  being  of 
ten,  —  his  limited  corporeal  structure,  too,  was  in 
cased  in  buckskin,  the  pioneer  mother,  like  other 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          113 

mothers,  feeling  no  vocation  toward  works  of 
supererogation  in  the  way  of  patching,  and  hav 
ing  discovered  that  skins  of  beasts  resist  the  clutch 
of  briers  and  the  destructive  propensities  character 
istic  of  callow  humanity  better  than  cloth,  even 
of  the  stoutest  homespun  weave, — "here's  where 
the  tomahawk  knocked  him  senseless  ! " 

"  Here's  where  the  scalping-knife  began  !  "  cried  a 
snaggle-toothed  worthy,  from  the  half-bent  posture 
in  which  he  had  been  surveying  the  forlorn  cica 
trices  of  the  bare  poll,  and  digging  his  heels  into 
the  red-clay  slope  to  sustain  his  weight. 

"  No,  no  —  here  !  "  advanced  another  theorist. 

Odalie  turned  her  head  away  ;  it  was  too  horrible  ! 
— or  she  would  have  seen  the  tugging  climb  of  Jose 
phine  and  her  triumphant  emergence  on  the  slope 
amongst  the  boys.  They  looked  at  her  in  surprise 
for  a  moment,  but  without  resentment,  for  it  was 
too  good  an  opportunity  to  rehearse  the  history 
that  so  enchanted  them. 

"  Here,  here,"  the  shrill  voices  began  anew. 
"  Here's  where  the  tomahawk  hit  him  a  clip ! " 
"  An*  here,"  shrieked  out  another,  seizing  upon 
Fifine's  chubby  little  hand  that  her  own  soft  finger 
might  have  the  privilege  of  exploring  the  wound, 
"  here's  where  the  scalping-knife  circled  him 
round!" 

"The  Injun  begun  here  first,  but  his  knife  was 


H4          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

dull,  an'  he  had  to  mend  his  holt ! "  screeched  a 
third. 

"  An',  —  an',  'n,"  vociferated  another,  almost 
speechless  in  the  contemplation  of  so  bloody  a  deed, 
"  ter  git  a  full  purchase  onto  it  the  Injun  held  him 
down  by  putting  a  foot  on  his  breast !  "  He  lifted 
his  own  bare  foot,  itself  a  cruel  and  savage  sight, 
scarred  with  the  scratching  of  briers  and  stone- 
bruises  and  the  results  of  what  is  known  as  dew- 
poison  —  he  called  it  " jew-pizen,"  and  so  do  those 
of  his  ilk  to  this  good  day,  —  and  aped  the  gesture 
so  present  to  his  imagination. 

Fifine  knew  only  too  well  what  it  all  meant,  as 
her  soft  infantile  face,  incongruously  maternal  with 
compassion,  bent  above  the  hideous  record  of  a 
hideous  deed. 

"  All  this  here,"  cried  the  first  expositor,  sparing 
a  sustaining  hand  to  hold  her  by  the  elbow,  —  for  her 
weight  not  being  sufficient  to  drive  her  heels  into 
the  clay  slope,  she  had  given  imminent  signs  of 
slipping  down  the  incline,  —  "  all  this  here  top  of 
his  'ead  ain't  the  sure  enough  top ;  the  Injuns 
scalped  that  off.  This  is  just  sich  top  as  growed 
since  ;  he  ain't  got  no  real  top  to  his  'ead." 

Fifine's  baby  hands  traveled  around  this  sub 
stitute  top ;  her  mouth  quivered  pitifully ;  then 
she  bent  down  and  kissed  the  grim  wounds  in 
several  places  with  a  sputter  of  babbling  commisera- 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          1 1 5 

tion.  At  this  moment  Hamish  caught  sight  of  her 
and  advanced  in  great  contrition.  He  flushed  to 
the  roots  of  his  hair  as  he  spoke  to  the  man,  for  as 
a  rule  those  few  fortunate  yet  unfortunate  persons 
who  had  chanced  to  survive  the  cruel  disaster  of 
being  scalped  were  exceedingly  sensitive  on  the  sub 
ject  of  their  disfigurement  —  it  was  usually  a  sub 
ject  not  to  be  mentioned.  But  this  settler  looked 
at  Hamish  in  surprise  as  the  boy  said,  "  Pray 
excuse  the  little  girl,  sir.  I  had  lost  sight  of  her 
and  didn't  know  she  was  so  vexatious  with  her 
curiosity." 

"  No,  no/'  returned  the  stalwart  giant,  in  a 
singularly  languid  voice,  mild  and  deep  and  pacific 
to  the  last  degree.  "  It  pleases  the  chil'n,  an'  don't 
hurt  me." 

He  was  busying  himself  in  tying  up  the  horrible 
exhibition  in  his  red  handkerchief  preparatory  to 
putting  on  his  coonskin  cap,  for  the  brisk  interest 
the  children  took  in  disrobing,  so  to  speak,  his 
scalpless  head,  did  not  extend  to  the  task  of  prop 
erly  accoutering  it  again,  and  repairing  the  disarray 
they  themselves  had  made,  for  they  had  scampered 
off  through  the  great  gate  of  the  fort.  His  voice 
gave  Hamish  a  sort  of  intimation  how  they  had  had 
the  hardihood  to  venture  on  these  familiarities  with 
one  so  formidable  of  aspect.  Hamish  learned  after 
ward  that  he  had  lost  his  scalp  rather  through  this 


n6          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

quality  of  quiet  indulgence,  so  open  to  treachery, 
than  to  inability  to  keep  it.  A  terrible  fighter  he 
was  when  he  was  roused,  though  even  then  his 
utmost  prowess  was  exerted  without  anger.  In  the 
Indian  fights  his  friends  had  often  exhorted  him  to 
scalp  the  wretches  he  slew,  as  he  had  been  scalped, 
and  thus  complete  his  revenge,  for  the  Indians  be 
lieved  that  a  scalpless  person  would  be  excluded 
from  the  happy  hunting-grounds  of  heaven,  their 
fury  thus  following  their  foes  from  this  world  into 
the  next. 

"  Let  'em  have  all  the  heaven  they  can  git,"  he 
would  remark,  wiping  his  bloody  knife  upon  the 
mane  of  his  horse.  "  I  expec'  to  smoke  the  pipe  o' 
peace  with  all  I  meet  on  Canaan's  shore,  —  Chero- 
kees,  Creeks,  or  Chickasaws,  —  Regulars,  Millish,  or 
Settlers." 

For  he  was  intensely  religious  and  had  a  queer 
conglomeration  of  doctrines  that  he  had  picked  up 
here  and  there  in  his  rambles  through  this  western 
world.  He  embraced  alike  the  theory  of  purgatory 
and  the  Presbyterian  tenets  of  predestination  and 
justification.  He  had  acquired  the  words  of  "  Hail 
Mary ! "  from  a  French  Catholic  with  whom  he  had 
hunted  on  the  banks  of  the  Sewanee,  as  the  Indians 
called  it,  and  Chauvanon,  as  the  Gallic  tongue 
metamorphosed  the  name,  —  perhaps  these  two  were 
the  first  white  men  that  ever  trod  those  bosky  ways, 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  117 

—  and  he  believed  faithfully  in  total  immersion  as 
promulgated  by  the  Baptists.  He  was  all  for  peace, 
like  the  Quakers,  —  peace  at  any  price;  and  yet 
when  for  the  entertainment  of  the  boys  at  a  friendly 
fireside  he  was  urged  to  recount  how  many  men  he 
had  fought  and  killed,  the  long  list  failed  only 
from  failure  of  memory. 

Hamish  expected  to  hear  no  more  of  him  after 
they  parted,  and  he  experienced  a  sort  of  repulsion 
which  found  an  echo  in  Odalie's  exclamation,  when 
Captain  Demere  proposed  that  Gilfillan  should  live 
with  them.  "  I  should  recommend  a  strong  stock 
ade  if  you  go  as  far  from  the  fort  as  the  bend  of  the 
river,"  the  officer  commented,  when  the  spot  they 
had  selected  was  made  known  to  him.  "  And  with 
only  two  gun  men,"  he  cogitated,  as  he  paused.  "It 
would  not  be  safe."  Then  brightening,  —  for  the 
officers  of  the  post  sought  to  facilitate  in  every  way 
the  prospects  of  the  settlers  and  the  extension  of 
the  settlement, —  "Take  Gilfillan  with  you ;  he's  an 
odd  fish,  but  he  is  equal  to  any  four  men,  and  he 
has  never  quite  settled  down  since  the  massacre  on 
the  Yadkin  where  he  lost  his  wife  and  children. 
Take  Gilfillan." 

A  group  from  the  fort  strolled  along  the  river- 
bank,  and  the  ripples  were  red  under  the  red  sunset 
sky,  and  the  eastern  mountains  were  blue  and  misty, 
and  the  western  were  purple  and  massive  and  dis- 


1 1 8          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

tinct,  and  though  sedges  were  sere  and  the  birds 
gone,  summer  was  in  the  air,  and  they  talked  of  hope 
and  home. 

Captain  Demere's  suggestion  broke  discordantly 
on  the  serenity  of  the  hour  and  the  theme. 

"  Oh !  oh  !  "  cried  Odalie,  «  and  have  Fifine  for 
ever  tracing  the  map  of  anguish  all  around  that 
terrible  head,  never  tiring  of  c  Here's  where  the 
tomahawk  hit  him  a  clip ! '  and  c  Here's  where  the 
scalping-knife  began ! ' ' 

"  What  a  consideration  !  "  exclaimed  the  officer, 
with  some  asperity.  "  And  if  you  will  excuse  me, 
how  very  French !  The  man's  rifle  —  the  finest 
marksman  I  ever  saw  —  is  the  point  for  your  con 
sideration.  And  you  find  his  looks  not  convenable." 

"  Fifine,  herself,  will  be  less  likely  to  have  a  head 
like  his,  perhaps,  if  he  will  come  and  strengthen 
our  station,"  suggested  Alexander  MacLeod,  as 
tutely. 

"  Oh,  —  yes,  yes  !  "  assented  Odalie,  with  a  sud 
den  expression  of  fright. 

"  Besides,"  said  Captain  Stuart,  with  his  bluff 
nonchalance,  "  the  river-bend  will  be  so  easily  famous 
for  the  good  looks  of  the  stationers  that  a  trifle  of 
discount  upon  Gilfillan  will  not  mar  the  sum  total." 

"  And  then,"  said  Captain  Demere, cc  he  is  a  very 
exceptional  kind  of  man  —  you  are  fortunate  to  find 
such  a  man  —  for  a  single  man,  in  the  settlements. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          119 

You  would  not  like  it  if  he  were  one  of  the  rattling, 
roaring  blades  that  such  irresponsible  single  fel 
lows  are  here,  usually." 

"  Mighty  sprightly  company,  some  of  these  ruf- 
flers,"  remarked  Captain  Stuart,  with  a  twinkling 
eye.  "  Rarely  good  company,"  he  averred. 

"And  besides,"  added  Captain  Demere,  whose 
extreme  sensitiveness  enabled  him  better  to  appre 
ciate  her  sentiment  than  the  others,  despite  his 
rebuke,  "you  need  not  have  him  in  the  same 
house  with  you ;  you  can  have  two  cabins  within 
the  stockade  and  connected  by  the  palisades  from 
one  house  to  the  other.  Otherwise,  in  the  present 
state  of  feeling  among  the  Cherokees  it  would 
hardly  be  safe  so  far  from  the  fort." 

It  had  been  explained  that  Alexander  was  espe 
cially  solicitous  concerning  the  choice  of  his  loca 
tion,  since  the  quality  of  the  land  had  not  been  well 
selected  in  his  former  home  on  New  River.  Here 
he  had  found  in  a  comparatively  small  compass  the 
ideal  conjuncture  for  those  growths  so  essential  to 
the  pioneer  who  must  needs  subsist  on  the  produce 
of  his  own  land.  In  that  day  and  with  the  extremely 
limited  and  difficult  means  of  transportation,  no 
deficit  could  be  filled  from  the  base  of  a  larger 
supply.  The  projected  station,  he  thought,  would 
be  as  safe  as  any  other  place  outside  the  range  of 
the  guns  of  the  fort,  but  he  welcomed  the  idea  of 


I2O          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

numbering  among  its  denizens  the  hardy  hunter, 
Gilfillan,  and  cared  no  more  for  his  bald  head  than 
he  did  for  the  broad,  smooth,  handsome  plait  of 
Captain  Stuart's  fair  hair.  MacLeod  had  all  the 
desperate  energy  of  one  who  seeks  to  retrieve  good 
fortune,  although  no  great  deal  of  money  was  in 
volved  in  his  earlier  disasters.  His  father  had  had 
shipping  interests,  and  the  loss  of  a  barque  and  her 
cargo  at  sea  had  sufficed  to  swamp  the  young  man's 
financial  craft  on  shore.  As  to  the  possessions  of 
his  wife's  family  —  they  were  a  few  inconsiderable 
heirlooms,  some  fine  traditions,  growing  now  a 
trifle  stale  and  moldy  with  age,  and  a  brave,  proud 
spirit  in  facing  the  world,  the  result  of  the  con 
sciousness  of  having  a  fine  old  record  to  sustain ; 
her  forefathers  had  been  of  that  class  of  refugees 
from  religious  persecution  whose  property  was  of 
such  a  character  and  whose  emergency  was  so 
imminent  that  they  had  fled  from  France  with  little 
else  than  the  garments  in  which  they  stood.  They 
had  not  prospered  since,  nor  multiplied,  and  Odalie 
was  nearly  the  last  of  the  family.  A  certain  innate 
refinement  in  both,  MacLeod's  gravity  and  dignity 
of  carriage  and  the  distinction  of  Odalie's  manner, 
notwithstanding  its  simplicity,  marked  their  excep 
tional  quality  to  a  discerning  judgment,  despite  their 
precarious  plight.  The  two  officers  had  grave 
doubts  as  to  the  wisdom  of  their  adventuring  so 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          121 

boldly  in  the  quest  of  fortune  in  these  savage  wil 
dernesses,  but  both  felt  that  it  was  well  for  the 
community  that  harbored  them,  and  each  knew 
of  isolated  instances  elsewhere  when  such  folly  had 
been  transmuted  into  a  potent  sapience  by  the  bounty 
of  uncovenanted  good  luck.  They  had  experienced 
a  sort  of  pleasure  in  the  advent  of  the  newcomers, 
for  Sandy's  intelligence  and  information  were  far 
above  the  average,  and  they  were  more  or  less  isolated 
in  this  remote  frontier  post  from  those  dainty  charms 
of  toilette  and  manner  which  Odalie  would  have 
found  means  to  practice  were  she  cast  away  on  a  des 
ert  island,  all  the  more  marked,  perhaps,  from  their 
demure  simplicity  and  a  sort  of  unstudied  elegance. 
It  was  only  a  serge  gown  she  wore,  of  the  darkest 
red  hue,  — murrey-colored,  she  called  it,  —  but  all 
faint  vestige  of  the  journey  had  vanished,  and  over 
the  long,  straight  bodice  of  those  days  was  a  cape 
or  fichu  of  fine  white  cambric,  embellished  with  a 
delicate  tambour,  one  of  those  graceful  accomplish 
ments  which  her  "  grand'maman  "  had  brought  from 
France,  and  transmitted  to  a  docile  pupil  as  among 
the  arts  which  should  adorn  a  woman.  The  deep 
red  and  the  vivid  white  of  this  costume  com 
ported  well  with  her  fine  dark-brown  hair,  rising 
straight  from  her  forehead  in  a  heavy  lustrous 
undulation,  and  drawn  back  to  be  gathered  into  a 
dense  knot,  her  fair  smooth  complexion,  the  con- 


122          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

templative  yet  suave  expression  of  her  large  dark 
eyes,  and  their  heavy,  almost  diplomatic  eyelashes, — 
for  they  implied  so  much  that  they  did  not  say,  and 
were  altogether  the  most  effective  feature  of  that 
most  effective  face.  Often  Sandy,  who  had  taken 
more  notice  of  those  eyes  and  eyelashes  than  any 
one  else  in  the  world,  —  although  they  had  not 
been  unremarked  in  general,  —  could  not  decipher 
what  she  meant  by  them,  and  at  other  times  he  mar 
veled  why  she  should  say  so  much  with  them  instead 
of  with  the  means  which  Nature  had  bestowed 
for  the  expression  of  her  views,  —  of  which,  too, 
she  made  ample  use.  Those  eyelashes,  for  instance, 
indicated  disdain,  reproof,  reproach,  and  yet  a  re 
pudiation  of  comprehension  when  Captain  Stuart 
said  significantly  that  he  hoped  she  found  her 
footing  quite  satisfactory  to-day  —  she  was  wear 
ing  a  spruce  pair  of  prunella  brodequins  which  had 
come  in  the  pack.  With  his  bluff  raillery  he  in 
quired  of  her  how  she  had  the  conscience  to  grudge 
her  husband  the  triumph  of  knowing  that  she  had 
shed  a  tun  of  tears  for  his  absence  yesterday  and 
had  demanded  of  the  commandant  of  the  post  that 
the  whole  strength  of  the  garrison  should  instantly 
take  the  field  to  search  for  him. 

"  For  discipline/'  she  answered,  with  placid  solem 
nity.  "  If  he  knew  that  I  care  enough  to  weep  for 
him  instead  of  for  my  shabby  shoes,  my  authority 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          123 

would  be  shattered.  And  a  mutiny,  under  any 
circumstances,  is  not  pretty." 

The  river  carried  the  officer's  jovial  laughter  far 
along  the  lapsing  current  that  was  growing  steely 
now,  reflecting  a  pale  gray  sky  of  very  luminous  tone, 
beneath  which  the  primeval  woods  were  dark  and 
gloomy,  and  the  mountains  on  the  east  loomed  but 
dimly  through  the  gray  mists,  while  on  the  west 
the  summit-line  was  hard  and  darkly  distinct.  It  was 
winter,  for  all  the  still  air;  no  sound  of  bird,  no  chirr 
ing  of  cicada,  no  rustle  of  leaf.  The  voice  of  the 
river  rose  quite  alone  in  the  silence,  and  a  single  star 
seemed  to  palpitate  in  a  white  agitation  as  it  listened. 

And  when  the  party  sat  down  on  the  rocky 
ledges  of  the  river-bank,  Captain  Demere  was 
beside  Odalie,  and  they  talked  not  of  this  new 
country  lying  before  them,  with  the  unread,  unre 
corded  mystery  of  its  past,  and  the  unsolved,  im 
penetrable  question  of  its  future,  but  of  his  own 
people.  With  her  delicate  tact  she  had  evaded 
the  continual  occupation  of  the  general  attention 
with  her  experiences  and  expectations,  and  the  de 
tails  of  her  new  home,  and  led  him  to  speak  of  him 
self  and  his  own  interests,  which  he  was  insensibly 
brought  to  do  with  little  disguise,  so  potent  were 
the  reminiscent  effects  of  the  murrey-colored  gown, 
and  the  dainty  freshness  of  the  cambric  fichu,  and 
the  delicate  feminine  attraction  that  hung  about  her 


124          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

like  an  exquisite  fragrance,  and  seemed,  because  of 
her  lack  of  arrogation,  less  peculiar  to  herself  than 
some  sweet  quality  appertaining  to  the  whole  spe 
cies  of  womankind. 

She  noted  how  the  future  of  men  like  these  is  not 
with  the  future  of  the  country.  They  were  not  to 
participate  in  the  prosperity  which  their  presence 
here  might  foster.  While  all  the  others  looked 
forward  they  looked  backward,  or  perhaps  aside,  as 
at  a  separate  life.  Such  is  the  part  a  garrison  must 
always  play.  She  doubted  if  many  felt  it.  With 
Mrs.  Halsing,  she,  too,  marveled  if  Captain  Stuart 
felt  the  need  of  aught. 

But  Demere,  looking  into  the  past  as  the  tide  of 
reminiscence  rose,  said  to  a  sympathetic  heart  a  thou 
sand  things  of  home.  Trifles  came  back,  hitherto 
forgotten;  sorrows  seared  over  by  time;  old  jests  that 
had  outworn  the  too  frequent  laugh  at  last ;  resolu 
tions  failing  midway,  half-hearted ;  friends  heretofore 
dead  even  to  memory ;  old  adventures  conjured  up 
anew ;  affections  lingering  about  an  old  home,  like 
the  scent  of  roses  when  the  fallen  petals  have  left 
but  the  bare  stalk ;  vanished  joys,  reviviscent  with 
a  new  throb  that  was  more  like  pain  than  pleasure. 
And  if  he  did  not  look  to  the  future  that  sweet 
December  night  of  Saint  Martin's  summer  by  the 
placid  Tennessee  River,  perhaps  it  was  as  well, — 
oh,  poor  Captain  Demere ! 


CHAPTER   V 

P  i  ^HE  next  day  ushered  in  a  crisis  in  the 
affairs  of  the  would-be  stationers  —  the 
house-raising  began.  All  the  men  of 
the  settlement  gathered  to  the  fore,  and  the  cabins 
—  a  substantial  double-cabin  the  larger  was,  and  the 
other,  one  room  and  a  loft  —  went  up  as  if  by  magic. 
The  stockade,  boles  of  stout  young  trees  sawed  off 
in  lengths  of  twenty  feet  and  sharply  pointed  at  the 
upper  end,  the  other  end  deeply  sunken  into  the 
ground,  began  to  grow  apace.  The  spring  was 
within  the  enclosure  —  a  point  of  vast  importance 
in  that  day,  since  in  times  of  danger  from  the 
Indians  it  was  not  necessary  to  sally  forth  from 
the  protection  of  the  stockade  for  the  indispensable 
water-supply  for  household  and  cattle.  The  pros 
pects  of  many  an  early  station  were  blighted  by 
overlooking  in  a  period  of  comparative  peace  and 
comfort  this  urgent  advantage,  and  many  a  life  was 
taken  during  some  desperate  sortie  with  piggins 
and  pails  by  the  defenders  of  the  stockade,  who 
could  have  held  out  valiantly  against  the  savage 
except  for  the  menace  of  death  by  thirst.  The 
officers  had  urged  this  point  upon  the  pioneers. 

125 


126          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

cc  Of  course  in  any  emergency,"  Demere  argued, 
"  the  forces  at  the  fort  would  relieve  you  at  once. 
But  the  true  military  principle  ought  to  govern 
even  in  such  a  minor  stronghold.  An  unfailing 
water-supply  ought  to  be  a  definitely  recognized 
necessity  in  every  military  post  subject  to  beleaguer- 
ment.  Otherwise  the  station  can  be  held  only  very 
temporarily  ;  one  can  lay  in  provisions  and  stand  a 
siege,  but  drouth  means  death,  for  surrender  is 


massacre." 


Nevertheless,  eastward  at  the  time,  and  later 
in  westward  settlements,  this  obvious  precaution 
was  often  neglected  and  the  obvious  disaster  as 
often  ensued. 

The  woodland  spring  within  the  stockade  was  a 
charming  and  rocky  spot  with  no  suggestion  of 
flowing  water  till  one  might  notice  that  the  moss 
and  mint  beneath  a  gigantic  tree  were  moist ;  then 
looking  under  a  broad,  flat,  slab-like  ledge  might  be 
descried  a  deep  basin  four  feet  in  diameter  filled 
with  water,  crystal,  clear,  and  brown  in  the  deep 
shadow  —  brown  and  liquid  as  the  eyes  of  some 
water-nymph  hidden  among  the  rocks  and  the  ever 
green  laurel. 

And,  oh  joy !  the  day  when  Odalie  kindled  her 
own  fire  once  more  on  her  own  hearth-stone  — 
good,  substantial  flagging ;  when  traversing  the 
passage  from  one  room  to  another  she  could  look 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          127 

down  through  the  open  gate  of  the  stockade  at 
the  silvery  rushing  of  the  Tennessee  in  its  broad 
expanse  under  the  blue  sky,  giving,  as  it  swirled 
around,  a  long  perspective,  down  the  straight  and 
gleaming  reach  before  it  curved  anew.  And  oh, 
the  moment  of  housewifely  pride  when  the  slender 
stock  of  goods  was  unpacked  and  once  more  the 
familiar  articles  adjusted  in  their  places,  her  flax 
wheel  in  the  chimney  corner,  her  china  ranged  to 
its  best  advantage  on  the  shelf;  and  often  did  she 
think  about  the  little  blue  jug  that  came  from 
France  and  marvel  what  had  been  its  fate !  All 
her  linen  that  was  saved,  the  pride  of  her  heart, 
made,  too,  its  brave  show.  She  had  a  white  cloth 
on  her  table,  albeit  the  table  seemed  to  have  much 
ado  to  stand  alone  since  its  legs  were  of  unequal 
length,  and  white  counterpanes  on  her  beds,  and 
gay  curtains  at  the  windows  opening  within  the 
stockade  —  the  other  side  had  but  loop-holes  —  on 
which  birds  of  splendid  plumage,  cut  from  East 
Indian  chintz,  had  been  overcast  on  the  white 
dimity,  and  which  looked  when  the  wind  stirred 
them,  for  there  was  no  glass  and  only  a  batten 
shutter,  as  if  all  the  winged  denizens  of  the 
brilliant  tropics  were  seeking  entrance  to  this 
happy  bower ;  the  room  had  an  added  woodland 
suggestion  because  of  the  bark  adhering  to  the  logs 
of  the  walls,  for  the  timbers  of  these  primitive 


128  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

houses  were  unhewn,  although  the  daubing  and  the 
chinking  were  stout  and  close,  and  with  the  aid  of 
the  great  flaring  fires  stood  off  Jack  Frost  with  a 
very  valiant  bluff. 

So  many  things  had  she  brought  in  small  com 
pass.  When  the  fire  was  a-flicker  on  a  dull  wintry 
afternoon,  and  the  snow  a-whirl  outside,  and  the 
tropical  birds  quite  still  on  their  shadowy  perches 
against  the  closed  batten  shutters,  Odalie,  Ham- 
ish,  Fifine,  and  the  cat  were  wont  to  congregate 
together  and  sit  on  the  buffalo  rug  spread  on  the 
puncheon  floor  beside  the  hearth,  and  explore  sun 
dry  horns  of  buffalo  or  elk  in  which  many  small 
articles  of  varying  degrees  of  value  had  been  com 
pactly  packed.  They  all  seemed  of  an  age  —  and 
this  a  young  age  —  when  the  joyous  exclamations 
arose  upon  the  recognition  of  sundry  treasured 
trifles  whose  utility  had  begun  to  be  missed. 

"  My  emery  bag  !  "  her  eyes  dewy  with  delight, 
"  and  oh,  my  cake  of  wax  !  " 

"  And  Lord  !  "  exclaimed  Hamish,  "  there's  my 
bullet-mould  —  whoever  would  have  thought  of 
that ! " 

"  And  your  new  ribbon  ;  'tis  a  very  pretty  piece," 
and  Odalie  let  the  lustrous  undulations  catch  the 
firelight  as  she  reeled  it  out.  "  The  best  taffeta  to 
tie  up  your  queue." 

"  I  don't  intend  to  plait  my  hair  in  a  queue  any 


"And  oh,  the  moment  of  housewifely  pride!  " 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  129 

more,"  Hamish  declared  contemptuously.  "  The 
men  in  this  country,"  he  continued  with  a  lofty  air, 
"  have  too  much  men's  work  to  do  to  busy  them 
selves  with  plaiting  hair  and  wearing  a  bobbing 
pig-tail  at  their  ears."  He  shook  his  own  dangling 
curls  as  he  spoke. 

Fifine  babbled  out  an  assortment  of  words  with 
many  an  ellipsis  and  many  a  breathy  aspiration 
which  even  those  accustomed  to  the  infant  infirmi 
ties  of  her  tongue  could  with  difficulty  interpret. 
Both  Odalie  and  Hamish,  bending  attentive  eyes 
upon  her,  discerned  at  last  the  words  to  mean  that 
Mr.  Gilfillan  had  no  hair  to  plait.  At  this  Hamish 
looked  blank  for  a  moment  and  in  consternation ; 
Odalie  exclaimed,  "Oh,  oh!"  but  Fifine  infinitely 
admired  Mr.  Gilfillan,  and  nothing  doubted  him 
worthy  of  imitation. 

"  I'll  have  none,  but  for  a  different  reason.  I'll 
cut  my  lovely  locks  close  with  Odalie's  shears  as 
soon  as  she  finds  them,"  Hamish  declared. 

He  did  not  dream  that  they  were  already  found 
and  bestowed  in  a  safe  nook  in  a  crevice  between 
the  chinking  where  they  would  not  be  again  discov 
ered  in  a  hurry,  for  he  had  earlier  expressed  his 
determination  to  forsake  the  gentility  of  long  hair 
in  emulation  of  sundry  young  wights,  the  roaring 
blades  of  single  men  about  the  settlement. 

Odalie  was  too    tactful    to  remonstrate.     "And 


130          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

oh !  "  she  exclaimed  with  a  sort  of  ecstasy.  "  My 
pouncet-box  !  how  sweet !  d'eliciem !  "  She  pre 
sented  the  gold  filigree  at  the  noses  successively  of 
Hamish  and  Fifine  and  the  cat,  all  of  whom  sniffed 
in  polite  ecstasy,  but  Kitty  suddenly  wiped  her  nose 
with  her  paw  several  times  and  then  began  to  wash 
her  face. 

"  My  poppet !  my  poppet !  "  cried  Fifine,  ecstati 
cally,  as  a  quaint  and  tiny  wooden  doll  of  a  some 
what  Dutch  build  and  with  both  arms  stretched  out 
straight  was  fished  out.  She  snuggled  it  up  to  her 
lips  in  rapture,  then  showed  it  to  the  cat,  who  evi 
dently  recognized  it,  and  as  it  was  danced  seductively 
before  her  on  the  buffalo  rug,  put  out  her  paw  and 
with  a  delicate  tentative  gesture  and  intent  brow  was 
about  to  play  with  it  after  her  fashion  of  toying 
with  a  mouse,  when  one  of  her  claws  caught  in  a 
mesh  of  the  doll's  bobinet  skirt.  Now  the  doll's 
finery,  while  limited  in  compass  to  minuteness,  was 
very  fine,  and  as  Josephine's  short  shriek  of  indig 
nation,  "  Quelle  barbarie !  "  arose  on  the  air,  the 
cat  turned  around  carrying  the  splendidly  arrayed 
poppet  off  on  her  unwilling  claw  —  to  be  lost, 
who  knew  where,  in  the  wilderness  !  The  frantic 
little  owner  seized  the  tail  of  the  mignonne  toute 
cherie,  which  sent  up  a  wail  of  poignant  discord 
ance  ;  the  romping  Hamish,  with  a  wicked  mimicry 
of  the  infantile  babbling  cry,  " £)uelle  barbarie!" 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          131 

impeded  the  progress  of  Fifine  by  catching  the  skirt 
of  her  little  jacket,  called  a  josie  ;  whereupon  Odalie, 
imitating  his  dislocated  French  accent  and  boyish 
hoarseness  in  the  exclamation,  "  j^//*?  barbarie!" 
laid  hold  upon  his  long  curly  hair,  held  together  by 
a  ribbon  as  an  apology  for  a  pig-tail.  There  ensued 
an  excited  scramble  around  on  the  buffalo  rug  be 
fore  the  fire,  during  which  the  horn  was  turned 
over  and  some  of  its  small  treasures  escaped  amidst 
the  long  fur.  This  brought  Odalie  to  a  pause,  for 
the  lost  articles  were  buttons  of  French  gilt,  and 
they  must  be  found  in  the  fur  and  counted ;  for 
did  they  not  belong  to  Sandy's  best  blue  coat,  and 
could  not  be  dispensed  with  ?  In  the  course  of  the 
merry-go-round  the  cat's  claw  had  become  disen 
tangled  from  the  doll's  frock.  Fifine  had  released 
the  clutch  of  reprisal  on  the  cat's  tail.  Hamish  had 
been  visited  with  a  fear  that  the  end  of  Fifine's 
josie  might  give  way  in  rents  before  her  obstinacy 
would  relax ;  and  Odalie  had  not  the  heart  to  pull 
his  hair  with  more  cruelty  than  she  had  heretofore 
indulged.  So  the  magic  circle  gave  way  by  its  own 
impulse  as  it  had  formed,  and  all  the  heads  were 
once  more  bent  together  in  earnest  absorption  in 
the  search  and  the  subsequent  disclosures  of  the 
buffalo  horn.  Such  choice  symposia  as  these  were 
usually  reserved  for  the  dusk  of  the  afternoon  in 
bad  weather  when  the  outdoor  work  was  done,  and 


132          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

Odalie  —  her  house  all  in  order  —  needed  more 
light  for  her  other  vocations.  It  was  quite  incredi 
ble  how  soon  a  loom  was  set  up  and  warping-bars 
constructed,  and  all  the  details  in  motion  of  that 
pioneer  home  life,  which  added  the  labor  and  inter 
ests  of  domestic  manufacture  to  the  other  absorbing 
duties  of  the  housewife  that  have  survived  in  these 
times  of  machinery  and  delegated  responsibility. 

These  were  the  holiday  moments  of  the  day,  but 
once  when  the  mother  and  the  little  girl  and  the  cat 
sat  intent  upon  the  rug,  their  treasures  spread  be 
fore  them,  Odalie's  face  paled  and  her  heart  almost 
sprang  into  her  mouth  as  she  heard  Hamish's  step 
outside,  quick  and  disordered.  As  he  burst  into  the 
room  she  knew  by  his  eyes  that  something  of  grave 
import  had  happened.  And  yet,  as  she  faced  him 
speechless,  he  said  nothing.  She  noted  his  uncar 
ing  casual  glance  at  that  potent  fascinator,  the  buf 
falo  horn,  and  his  hasty,  unsettled  gesture.  Fie 
seemed  resolved  not  to  speak  —  then  he  suddenly 
exclaimed  solemnly :  — 

"  Odalie,  there  is  the  prettiest  creature  in  this 
settlement  that  you  ever  saw  in  your  life  —  and  — 
the  gracefullest !  " 

"  A  fawn  ? "  said  the  mercurial  Odalie,  who  re 
covered  her  poise  as  suddenly  as  it  was  shaken. 

He  looked  at  her  in  a  daze  for  a  moment. 

"  A  fawn  ?     What  absurdity  !  " 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  133 

"  Nothing   less   than   a    dear,  I    must    needs    be 

» 
sure. 

He  apprehended  her  sarcasm.  Then,  too  ab 
sorbed  to  be  angry,  he  reverted  to  himself. 

"  Oh,"  he  cried  with  bitterness,  "  why  do  you  let 
me  go  about  in  worshipful  company  with  my  hair 
like  this  ?  —  "  he  clutched  at  his  tousled  locks. 

"Yes  —  yes,  I  see.  It  always  goes  to  the  head," 
said  Odalie,  demurely. 

"  Don't  laugh  at  me,"  he  exclaimed,  "  but  how 
had  you  the  heart  —  and  Sandy's  hair  always  in  such 
trim-wise,  and  you  and  Fifine  like  people  of  fashion." 

Odalie  could  but  laugh  in  truth ;  she  had  known 
such  splendors  as  colonial  life  at  that  day  could 
present  and  she  was  well  aware  how  the  ill-equipped 
wife  of  a  pioneer  on  the  furthest  frontier  failed  of 
that  choice  aspect. 

"  I  thought,"  she  said,  still  laughing,  "  that  you 
were  ambitious  of  the  fashion  of  such  coiffure  as 
Mr.  Gilfillan  affects  —  oh,  poor  man!  —  and  had 
made  up  your  mind  to  plait  your  hair  no  more." 

Hamish  took  this  very  ill,  and  in  dudgeon  would 
not  divulge  the  name  and  quality  of  the  fair  maiden 
the  sight  of  whom  had  so  gone  to  his  head.  But  it 
was  the  next  evening  only  that  they  were  to  attend 
a  ball  in  the  officers'  mess-hall  at  the  fort,  in  cele 
bration  of  the  joys  of  Christmastide,  and  Odalie  per 
ceived  the  rancor  of  resentment  gradually  departing 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

when  he  came  and  begged  —  not  her  pardon  —  but 
that  she  would  do  him  the  infinite  favor  to  plait 
his  hair.  Try  as  he  would,  and  he  had  tried  for 
an  hour,  he  could  not  achieve  a  coiffure  that 
seemed  satisfactory  to  him  in  the  solicitous  state  of 
his  feelings.  This  ceremony  she  performed,  perched 
upon  what  she  called  a  tabouret,  which  was  nothing 
but  a  stout,  square  billet  of  wood  with  a  cover  and 
valance  of  a  dull  blue  fustian,  while  he  sat  at  her 
feet,  and  Sandy  looked  on  with  outward  gravity, 
but  with  a  twinkle  in  his  sober  eyes  that  made  Ham- 
ish's  blood  boil  to  realize  that  she  had  told  his 
brother  of  the  sudden  reason  for  a  change  of  heart 
touching  the  mode  of  wearing  his  hair,  and  that  they 
had  quietly  laughed  at  him  about  it.  Nevertheless, 
now  he  valued  every  strand  of  it  as  if  it  were  spun 
gold,  and  would  have  parted  with  it  as  hardly. 

The  Christmas  ball  was  indeed  an  affair  of  much 
splendor.  Profuse  wreaths  of  holly,  with  berries  all 
aflame,  decorated  the  walls  of  the  great  hall,  and 
among  them  the  lines  of  buffalo  horns  and  the  ant 
lers  of  deer  and  the  waving  banners  showed  with 
enhanced  effect.  From  the  centre  of  the  ceiling  the 
mystic  mistletoe  depended  with  such  suggestively 
wide-spreading  boughs  that  it  might  seem  that  no 
fair  guest  could  hope  to  escape  the  penalty ;  this 
was  the  broad  jest  of  the  masculine  entertainers. 
The  hosts,  all  the  commissioned  officers  being  pres- 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          135 

ent,  were  in  full  uniform,  seeming  brilliant  against 
the  decorated  walls  and  in  the  great  flare  of  the 
fire ;  even  lace  ruffles  were  to  be  seen  and  many  a 
queue  was  braided  and  tied  as  fairly  as  Hamish's 
own.  A  huge  Yule  log,  such  as  could  not  be  dis 
credited  by  any  that  had  ever  sent  up  sparks  and 
flame  at  this  sacred  season,  made  the  great  chimney 
place  one  vast  scarlet  glow ;  the  door  of  necessity 
stood  open,  although  the  snow  was  on  the  ground, 
and  the  dark,  bare  branches  of  the  rows  of  trees  left 
in  military  alignment,  down  the  centre  of  the  parade, 
whitely  glimmered  with  frost  and  ice  akin  to  the 
chilly  glitter  of  the  wintry  stars  which  they  seemed 
to  touch  with  their  topmost  boughs. 

The  garrison  had  been  surprised  on  the  previous 
midnight  by  the  sudden  outbreak  of  the  sound  on 
the  icy  air  of  certain  familiar  old  Christmas  carols 
sung  by  a  few  of  the  soldiers,  who  had  the  memory 
and  the  voice  to  compass  the  feat,  and  who  had  been 
wont  for  a  time  to  steal  off  to  the  woods  to  rehearse 
in  secret,  in  order  to  bring  to  the  Yule-tide,  so  surely 
coming,  even  to  these  far-away  fastnesses,  something 
of  the  blithe  association  and  yet  the  spirit  of  sanctity 
of  the  old  remembered  Yule-tides  of  long  distances 
agone  both  of  time  and  place.  The  enthusiasm  that 
this  reminder  awakened  nullified  all  thought  of  the 
breach  of  discipline.  The  singers  were  summoned 
into  the  hall  by  the  commandant,  and  the  embers 


136          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

stirred  up,  and  they  drank  his  health  and  the  king's 
as  long  as  he  dared  let  them  have  the  liquor.  And 
now,  all  unseen  in  the  darkness,  the  waits  were  sta 
tioned  at  a  little  distance  to  mellow  the  sound,  and 
were  singing  these  old  Christmas  carols  while  the 
guests  gathered.  The  rough  martial  voices  rang 
out  with  a  sort  of  jubilant  solemnity  and  a  strongly 
defined  tempo giustoy  very  natural  to  men  who  "mark 
time"  for  their  sins,  and  whose  progress  through 
life  is  to  the  sound  of  the  drum. 

The  iterative  beat  pulsed  through  the  open  doors 
to  the  groups  about  the  big  Yule-tide  fires  and 
those  coming  in  out  of  the  dark  wilderness,  not 
daring  to  stir  without  firelock,  knife,  and  pistol,  for 
fear  of  a  treacherous  foe.  And  in  the  hearts  and 
minds  of  the  full-armed  guests  was  roused  a  senti 
ment  not  new  but  half-forgotten,  to  hear  in  those 
confident,  mellow,  assured  tones  — 

"  God  rest  ye,  merry  gentlemen, 
Let  nothing  ye  dismay  ; 
For  Jesus  Christ  our  Saviour 
Was  born  upon  this  day." 

Between  each  stanza  when  silence  came  unwel 
come  to  the  ear  and  the  chatter  of  tongues  seemed 
dull  and  trivial  a  bugle  sang  out  suddenly,  its 
golden-sweet  notes  vibrating  and  ringing  in  the  air 
in  the  intervals  of  this  sweet  old  hymning  theme. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  137 

After  this  tribute,  such  as  they  could  pay  to  the 
holier  character  of  the  day  and  the  reminder  of  home, 
the  festivity  and  jollity  began.  The  introduction  was 
auspicious  and  touched  the  sense  of  the  picturesque 
of  those  to  whom  life  was  wont  to  show  but  a  sordid 
aspect.  The  settlers  were  pleased  with  the  pomp 
and  ceremony  of  their  reception,  genuinely  delighted 
with  the  effect  of  the  carols  and  the  summoning  up 
of  old  memories  and  homing  thoughts  so  tenderly 
stirred,  satisfied  with  themselves  and  disposed  to 
admire  each  other. 

One  would  hardly  have  believed  that  there  was 
so  much  finery  in  the  settlement  —  of  different 
dates  and  fashions,  it  is  true,  and  various  national 
ities.  The  wife  of  one  settler  wore  a  good  gown 
of  brocade,  although  her  husband  seemed  quite 
assured  in  his  buckskins.  Two  or  three  heads 
were  held  the  higher  from  a  proud  consciousness 
of  periwigs 7  and  powder.  Mrs.  Halsing  had  a 
tall,  curious  comb  of  filigree  silver  and  great  silver 
ear-rings,  a  sad-colored  stuff  gown,  but  a  queer 
foreign  apron  across  which  were  two  straight  bands 
of  embroidery  of  a  pattern  and  style  that  might 
have  graced  a  museum ;  Odalie,  the  expert,  deter 
mined  that  the  day  was  not  far  distant  when  she 
should  sue  for  the  privilege  of  examining  the  stitch. 
She  herself  was  clad  in  the  primrose-flowered 
paduasoy,  with  a  petticoat  of  dark  red  satin  and 


138          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

all  her  Mechlin  lace  for  a  fichu,  while  pearls  —  her 
grand'  maman's  necklace  —  were  in  her  dark  hair. 
Mrs.  Beedie  had  woven  her  own  frock  with 
her  own  sturdy  hands,  and  with  a  fresh  mob-cap 
on  her  head  and  a  very  fresh  rose  on  her  cheek 
actively  danced  the  whole  night  through. 

The  widow  of  the  man  who  had  come  hither  to 
forward  his  passion  for  the  ministry  to  the  Indian 
savages,  and  who  had  lost  his  life  in  the  fruitless 
effort,  now  probably  deemed  dissent  a  grievous  folly 
and  had  returned  to  earlier  ways  of  thinking  and 
conventional  standards.  She  wore  no  weeds  —  one 
could  not  here  alter  the  fashion  of  one's  dress,  the 
immutable  thing,  for  so  transitory  a  matter  as  grief. 
She  regarded  the  scene  with  the  face  of  one  who  has 
little  share,  although  she  wore  a  puce-colored  satin 
with  some  fine  lace  frills  and  a  modish  cap  on  her 
thin  hair. 

But  the  daughter !  With  a  lordly  carriage  of 
her  delicate  head  that  might  have  been  reminiscent 
of  her  grandfather,  the  bishop,  and  yet  joyous 
girlish  red  lips,  full  and  smiling  and  set  about 
with  deep  dimples ;  with  her  hair  of  red-gold,  and 
sapphire  eyes,  she  was  eminently  calculated  to 
shatter  what  poor  remnant  of  peace  of  mind  the 
young  ensign  and  two  young  lieutenants  who 
clustered  about  her  had  been  able  to  keep  in  this 
desert  place — the  more  precarious  since  it  was  well 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          139 

understood  that  the  fair  Belinda  had  high  expecta 
tions,  and  as  to  matrimonial  bait  hoped  for  the 
opportunity  to  "  bob  for  whale."  This  gay  exile 
herself,  born  and  reared  in  the  provinces  and  sur 
rounded  always  by  the  little  court  her  beauty  sum 
moned  about  her,  did  not  look  forward  to  a  life 
on  the  frontier.  She  anticipated  at  some  time  an 
invasion  of  England  and  a  life  worthy  the  brilliance 
of  her  aspect,  and  occasionally  when  her  inter 
locutors  were  such  as  could  attribute  to  her  no 
braggart  pride,  she  would  mention  that  she  had 
relatives  there  —  of  good  quality  —  who  would 
doubtless  be  glad  to  receive  her.  The  mother, 
poor  sad-visaged  martyr  of  deceit,  would  only 
draw  her  thin  wrinkled  collapsed  lips  the  closer, 
holding  hard  hidden  the  fact  that  the  girl's  father 
had  been  looked  upon  by  these  relatives  "of  good 
quality "  as  a  monster  of  ingratitude,  and  at  the 
same  time  as  a  candidate  for  a  strait  waist-coat, 
whose  apostasy  and  voluntary  exile  had  hastened 
the  good  bishop's  old  age  and  broken  his  heart; 
that  the  children  of  the  ingrate  would  be  avoided 
by  this  conventional  clique,  like  the  leprosy,  and 
esteemed  sure  to  develop  sooner  or  later  terrible 
and  infinitely  inconvenient  heresies,  and  occasion 
heaven  only  knew  what  bouleversement  in  any 
comely  and  orthodox  and  reasonable  method  of  life. 
She  had  not  much  vigor  of  sentiment,  but  such 


140          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

flicker  of  hatred  as  could  burn  among  the  ashes  of 
her  nature  glowed  toward  those  who  had  cut  her 
husband  off  and  ostracized  him,  and  made  of  his 
earnest  sacrificial  effort  to  do  his  duty,  as  it  was 
revealed  to  him,  a  scoff,  a  burlesque,  a  reproach, 
and  a  bitter  caricature.  She  knew,  too,  how  much 
of  money,  of  dress,  and  of  connections  it  would 
require  to  return  to  that  country  where  they  would 
have  no  base  from  which  to  organize  the  brave 
campaign  that  the  brilliantly  equipped  daughter 
contemplated  with  such  gay  and  confident  courage. 

The  girl's  brother,  however,  Hamilton  Rush,  five 
years  her  senior,  forgetting  that  he  was  the  grandson 
of  a  prelate  and  the  son  of  a  martyr  by  election,  bent 
all  the  energies  he  had  inherited  from  both  in  the 
effort  to  build  up  home  and  wealth  and  a  fair  future 
in  this  rich  land,  which  held  out  such  bounties  to 
the  strong  hand  and  the  brave  heart.  He  was  here 
to-night,  looking  on  at  the  scene  of  pleasure  with 
as  absent  and  absorbed  a  face  as  a  London  stock 
broker  might  have  worn  in  the  midst  of  a  financial 
crisis. 

The  brilliant  mirage  before  the  shining  an- 
ticipative  eyes  of  the  fair  Belinda  did  not  pre 
clude  her  from  entering  with  youthful  ardor  into 
these  festivities  now  faute  de  mieux,  garbed  in  a 
canary-colored  tabby,  of  which  the  moire  effect,  as 
we  should  say  nowadays,  glistened  and  shoaled  in 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          141 

the  light  and  the  luster  of  the  silk.  It  was  worn 
opening  over  a  skirt  of  white  satin  with  yellow 
stripes,  enclosing  in  each  a  delicate  pattern  of  a  vine 
of  roses  in  several  natural  tints  from  pink  to  a  deep 
purplish  red,  all  having  tnat  sere  sort  Of  freshness 
which  comes  from  solicitous  preservation  rather 
than  newness — like  a  pressed  flower;  one  might 
imagine  that  garbed  thus  the  galvanized  widow  had 
captured  the  affections  of  the  bishop's  son,  not  then 
perhaps  so  severely  ascetic  of  outlook.  But  Miss 
Belinda  danced  as  graciously  with  the  ensign  as  if 
she  had  no  splendid  ulterior  views,  and  graced  the 
minuet  which  Odalie  and  Captain  Demere  led. 
Hamish  looking  at  them  thought  that  though  she 
was  as  unlike  Odalie  as  a  splendid  tulip  differs  from 
the  stately,  tender  sweetness  of  the  aspect  of  a  white 
rose,  they  both  adorned  the  dance  like  flowers  in  a 
parterre.  He  resolved  with  a  glow  of  fraternal  pride 
that  he  would  tell  Odalie  how  beautiful  she  was  in 
her  primrose-tinted  gown  and  deep  red  jupon  with 
her  dark  hair  rolled  high,  and  its  string  of  white 
pearls,  her  step  so  deliberate  and  smooth  with  its 
precision  of  grace  as  with  uplifted  clasped  hands 
she  and  the  officer  opened  the  dance. 

This  minuet  was  a  splendid  maze  to  Hamish's 
limited  experience,  as  the  firelight  glowed  and 
flashed  on  the  scarlet  uniforms  and  the  delicate, 
dainty  tints  of  the  gowns  of  the  ladies,  giving  out 


142          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

the  gloss  of  satin  and  now  and  again  showing  the 
soft  whiteness  of  a  bare  arm  held  upward  to  the 
clasp  of  a  partner's  hand  in  a  lace  ruffle  and  a  red 
sleeve  in  the  graceful  attitudes  prescribed  by  the 
dance.  The  measured  and  stately  step,  the  slow, 
smooth  whirl,  the  swinging  changing  postures,  the 
fair  smiling  faces  and  shining  eyes,  all  seemed  curi 
ously  enhanced  by  the  environment — the  back 
ground  of  boughs  of  holly  on  the  walls,  and  the 
military  suggestions  of  the  metallic  flashing  of  the 
arms  resting  on  the  line  of  deer  antlers  that  encircled 
the  room  —  it  was  like  a  bird  singing  its  roundelay 
perched  in  a  cannon's  mouth. 

Hamish  himself  stood  against  the  wall,  and  for  a 
time  it  may  be  doubted  if  any  one  saw  how  very 
handsomely  his  "lovely  locks"  were  plaited,  so  did 
he  court  the  shadows.  Sandy  noted  with  secret 
amusement  how  persistently  the  boy's  eyes  followed 
the  beautiful  Miss  Rush,  for  it  was  evident  that  she 
was  nineteen  or  twenty  years  of  age,  at  least  three 
years  older  than  her  latest  admirer. 

Despite  his  sudden  infatuation,  however,  Hamish 
was  a  person  of  excellent  good  sense,  and  he  soon 
saw  the  fatuity  of  this  worship  from  afar.  "  Let  the 
ensign  and  the  lieutenants  pine  to  death,"  he  thought 
—  then  with  the  rough  old  frontier  joke,  "  I'm  sav 
ing  my  scalp  for  the  Injuns."  Nevertheless  he  was 
acutely  glad  that  his  hair  was  like  a  gentleman's, 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          143 

and  when  he  finally  ventured  out  of  the  crowd  he 
secured,  to  his  great  elation,  a  partner  for  one  of 
the  contra-dances  that  succeeded  the  minuet,  for 
the  men  so  greatly  outnumbered  the  women  that 
this  argued  considerable  enterprise  on  a  newcomer's 
part.  Hamish  had  determined  to  dance,  if  with 
nobody  but  Mrs.  Raising;  but  there  were  other 
girlish  flowers,  somewhat  overshadowed  by  the 
queens  of  the  parterre,  whom  he  found  when 
his  eyes  had  lost  their  dazing  gloat  upon  the 
beauty  of  the  belle  of  the  settlement  —  mere  little 
daisies  or  violets,  as  near  half  wild  as  himself, 
knowing  hardly  more  of  civilized  society  than  he 
did.  Most  of  these  were  clad  in  bright  homespun  ; 
one  or  two  were  so  very  young  that  they  found  it 
amazing  sport,  and  in  truth  so  did  he,  although  he 
had  the  style  of  patronizing  the  enterprise,  to 
plunge  out  of  the  great  hall  and  scamper  across  the 
snowy  parade  to  a  room,  emptied  by  the  gradual 
exhaustion  of  the  munitions  it  had  contained,  and 
now  devoted  to  the  entertainment  of  the  children 
of  the  settlers,  who  it  is  needless  to  say  had  come 
necessarily  with  the  elder  members  of  the  pioneer 
families  to  participate  in  the  gayeties  of  the  fort. 
It  was  a  danger  not  to  be  contemplated  to  leave 
them  in  the  wholly  deserted  settlement ;  so,  seques 
tered  here  in  this  big  room,  bare  of  all  but  holly 
boughs  upon  the  wall  and  a  great  fire  and  a  bench 


144          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

or  two  about  the  chimney  corner,  they  added  eclat 
to  the  occasion  of  the  officers'  ball  by  reason  of  the 
enthusiastic  spirit  that  pervaded  the  Christmas 
games  under  the  direction  of  Corporal  O'Flynn. 
He  had  been  delegated  to  supervise  and  control  the 
juvenile  contingent,  being  constituted  master  of  the 
revels.  With  his  wild  Irish  spirit  aflame  he  was  in 
his  element.  A  finer  looking  Bruin  than  he  was 
when  enveloped  in  a  great  bearskin  never  came  out 
of  the  woods,  and  certainly  none  more  active  as  he 
chased  the  youthful  pioneers,  who  were  screaming 
shrilly,  from  one  side  of  the  hall  to  the  other.  As 
"  Poor  Puss  "  he  struggled  frantically  for  a  corner, 
failing,  however,  when  a  settler  of  the  advanced 
age  of  four,  but  mighty  enterprising,  made  in 
swiftly  between  his  knees,  gave  him  a  tremen 
dous  fall,  and  gained  the  coveted  goal.  "  Mily, 
mily  bright "  was  infinitely  enlivened  by  the  pres 
ence  of  the  recruits  from  the  ball-room,  and  the 
romp  became  tumultuous  when  Hamish  undertook 
the  role  of  one  of  the  witches  that  waited  by  the 
way  to  intercept  those  —  among  whom  was  the 
corporal  —  who  sought  to  get  there  by  "candle 
light,"  and  who  were  assured  that  they  could  do 
this  if  their  "  legs  were  long  enough."  When  he 
pursued  the  soldier  and  his  juvenile  party  from 
one  side  of  the  room  to  the  other,  winding  and 
doubling  and  almost  tumbling  into  the  fire,  the 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          145 

delighted  screams  of  the  children  were  as  loud 
and  shrill  as  if  they  were  all  being  scalped,  and 
caused  the  sentries  in  the  block-house  towers  to 
look  in  surprise  and  doubt  in  that  direction  more 
than  once,  and  finally  brought  Captain  Stuart  from 
the  officers'  quarters  to  see  for  himself  what  was 
going  on.  As  he  stood  in  the  door  with  his  im 
perious  face,  his  bluff  manner,  his  military  dress, 
and  his  great  muscular  height,  the  children,  in 
spired  by  that  love  of  the  incongruous  which  al 
ways  characterizes  childhood,  swarmed  about  him 
with  the  insistence  that  he  should  be  blindfolded  in 
Blindman's  Buff.  And  surely  he  proved  the  cham 
pion  blind  man  of  the  world  !  After  one  benighted 
stumbling  rush  half  across  the  room,  amidst  a  storm 
of  squealing  ecstasy,  he  plunged  among  his  pygmy 
enemies  with  such  startling  success  as  to  have 
caught  two  or  three  by  the  hair  of  their  heads  with 
one  hand,  while  with  the  other  he  was  laying  about 
him  with  such  discrimination  that  his  craft  became 
apparent.  He  was  not  playing  fair  !  —  he  could 
see  !  —  he  peeped  !  he  peeped  !  and  his  laugh  being 
much  resented,  he  was  put  to  the  door  by  his  small 
enemies,  who  evidently  expected  him  to  feel  such 
repentance  as  he  might  experience  if  he  were  to  be 
court-martialed. 

O'Flynn,  watching  him  go  off  across  the  snowy 
shadowy  parade,  noticed  that  he  did  not    at   once 


146          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

return  to  the  open  door  of  the  great  hall  where 
the  swirl  of  the  dance  could  be  seen  in  a  kaleido 
scopic  glow  of  color,  and  whence  the  glad  music 
came  forth  in  a  mellow  gush  of  sound;  but  stood 
at  some  little  distance  watching  the  progress  of  the 
corporal  of  the  guard,  who  with  the  relief  was  on  his 
way  to  the  posts  of  the  sentinels;  then  Stuart  dis 
appeared  within  one  of  the  block-houses,  evidently 
ascending  to  the  tower ;  after  an  interval  he  came 
out  and  again  traversed  the  parade,  going  diagonally 
across  the  whole  enclosure  without  doubt  to  the 
block-house  at  the  further  bastion ;  thus  from  these 
two  coigns  of  vantage  he  could  survey  the  whole  of 
the  region  on  the  four  sides  of  the  fort. 

"  I'll  go  bail,  ould  Foxy,"  said  Corporal  O'Flynn, 
apostrophizing  his  superior  officer  under  his  breath, 
"  that  there's  nothin'  that  your  sharp  eyes  doesn't 
see  —  if  it's  just  a  snake  takin'  advantage  o'  the 
privacy  o'  the  dark  hour  to  slough  his  skin.  But 
I'd  give  ye,"  he  hesitated,  "  me  blessin',  if  you'd 
tell  me  what  'tis  ye're  lookin'  for.  I  want  to  know, 
not  from  a  meddlesome  sphirit,  but  jist  from  sheer 
curiosity  —  because  my  mother  was  a  woman  an' 
not  a  witch." 

For  Captain  Stuart  had  encountered  a  difficulty 
in  these  simple  backwoods  Christmas  festivities 
which  was  altogether  unexpected.  He  had  dili 
gently  considered  the  odds  against  success,  in  which, 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          147 

however,  the  chief  seemed  the  lack  of  appropriate 
refreshment,  for  one  could  not  serve  venison  and 
buffalo  and  wild  fowl  to  hunters  as  luxuries,  and  the 
limited  compass  and  utilitarian  character  of  the  goods 
sent  from  the  base  of  supplies  over  the  mountains 
rendered  even  the  accumulation  of  the  requisite 
materials  for  the  punch-bowl  a  matter  of  fore 
thought  and  skilled  strategy.  After  the  wheat- 
bread  had  been  secured  to  make  the  ramequins  this 
feature  came  near  to  being  dropped  because  of  the 
difficulty  of  obtaining  the  simple  ingredients  of  eggs 
and  cheese  to  compound  the  farce  wherewith  they 
should  be  spread.  But  this  too  had  been  accom 
plished.  The  method  of  providing  for  the  safety  and 
entertainment  of  the  children  of  the  settlers,  with 
out  whom  they  could  not  leave  home  yet  whose 
presence  would  have  hindered  if  not  destroyed  the 
enjoyment  of  the  elders,  seemed  a  stroke  of  genius. 
The  soldiers  and  non-commissioned  officers  were 
satisfactorily  assigned  a  share  in  the  entertainment 
appropriate  to  their  military  rank  and  in  consonance 
with  their  taste,  and  were  even  now  carousing  gayly 
in  their  quarters,  where  there  was  more  Christmas 
spirit  in  circulation  than  spirituous  liquor,  for  the 
commandant's  orders  were  niggardly  indeed  as  to 
serving  out  the  portions  of  tafia,  not  in  the  interests 
of  temperance  so  much  as  of  discipline  in  view  of 
their  perilous  situation  so  far  from  help,  so  alone 


148  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

in  the  midst  of  hordes  of  inimical  savages;  his  par 
simony  in  this  regard  passed  with  them  as  neces 
sity,  since  they  knew  that  rum  was  hard  to  come 
by,  and  even  this  meager  dole  was  infrequent 
and  a  luxury.  Therefore  they  drank  their  thimble 
ful  with  warm  hearts  and  cool  heads ;  the  riotous 
roared  out  wild  songs  and  vied  with  one  another 
in  wrestling  matches  or  boxing  encounters;  the  more 
sedate  played  cards  or  dominoes  close  in  to  the 
light  of  the  flaring  fire,  or  listened  with  ever  fresh 
interest  to  the  great  stories  often  told  by  the  gray- 
headed  drum-major  who  had  served  under  the 
Duke  of  Cumberland  in  foreign  lands,  and  promptly 
smote  upon  the  mouth  any  man  who  spoke  of  his 
royal  highness  as  "  Billy  the  Butcher  "  ; 8  for  there 
were  Scotchmen  in  the  garrison  intolerant  of  the  title 
of  "  Hero  of  Culloden,"  having  more  or  less  remote 
associations  with  an  experience  delicately  mentioned 
in  Scotland  as  "  being  out  in  the  Forty-five."  With 
each  fresh  narration  the  drum-major  produced  new 
historical  details  of  the  duke's  famous  fields  and 
added  a  few  to  the  sum  of  the  enemies  killed  and 
wounded,  till  it  seemed  that  if  the  years  should 
spare  him,  it  would  one  day  be  demonstrated  that 
the  warlike  William  Augustus  had  in  any  specified 
battle  slain  more  men  by  sword  and  bayonet  and  good 
leaden  ball  than  were  ever  mustered  into  any  army 
on  the  face  of  the  earth.  All  the  soldiers  were  in 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          149 

their  spruce  parade  trim,  and  every  man  had  a  bunch 
of  holly  in  his  hat. 

Even  the  Indians  had  been  considered.  In  re 
sponse  to  the  invitation,  they  had  sent  the  previous 
day  their  symbolic  white  swan's  wings  painted  with 
streaks  of  white  clay,  and  these  were  conspicu 
ously  placed  in  the  decorated  hall.  The  gates 
of  the  fort  that  morning  had  been  flung  wide  open 
to  all  who  would  come.  Tafia  —  in  judiciously 
small  quantities,  it  is  true  —  was  served  to  the  tribes 
men  about  the  parade,  but  the  head-men,  Atta- 
Kulla-Kulla,  Willinawaugh,  Rayetaeh,  Otacite,  more 
than  all,  Oconostota,  the  king  of  the  Cherokee 
nation,  were  escorted  to  the  great  hall  of  the  officers' 
quarters,  the  latter  on  the  arm  of  Captain  Stuart 
himself;  the  Indian  king,  being  a  trifle  lame  of  one 
leg,  —  he  was  known  among  the  soldiers  as  "  Old 
Hop," — was  evidently  pleased  by  the  exceptional 
attention  and  made  the  most  of  his  infirmity,  lean 
ing  heavily  on  the  officer's  arm.  Arrayed  in  their 
finest  fur  robes  with  beautiful  broad  collars  of  white 
swan's  down  about  their  necks,  with  their  faces  mild 
and  devoid  of  paint,  seated  in  state  before  the  great 
fire,  the  head-men  were  regaled  with  French  brandy, 
duly  diluted,  and  the  best  Virginia  tobacco,  offered 
in  very  curious  pipes,  which,  with  some  medals 
and  gorgets  imported  for  the  purpose,  were  pre 
sented  as  gifts  when  the  ceremony  was  concluded, 


150          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

and  which  the  Cherokees  accepted  with  a  show  of 
much  pleasure ;  indeed,  they  conducted  themselves 
always  under  such  circumstances  with  a  very  good 
grace  and  a  certain  dignity  and  propriety  of  feeling 
which  almost  amounted  to  good  breeding. 

This  was  maintained  when,  invited  by  the  com 
mandant,  they  witnessed  the  dress  parade,  especially 
elaborate  in  honor  of  the  occasion,  and  they  listened 
attentively  when  Captain  Stuart  made  a  short  ad 
dress  to  the  troops  on  the  subject  of  the  sacred 
character  of  the  day  and  adjured  them  in  a  frank 
and  soldierly  fashion  to  have  a  care  that  they  main 
tained  the  moral  discipline  in  which  they  had  all 
been  drilled  and  gave  no  advantage  to  the  Enemy 
because  they  were  here,  cut  off  from  the  main  body 
of  Christianity,  so  far  from  the  ministrations  of  a 
chaplain  and  the  beneficent  usages  of  civilization. 
"  Every  soldier  learns  command  from  obedience," 
he  said.  "  And  if  I  should  send  a  detail  from  the 
ranks  on  some  special  duty,  the  file-leader  would 
know  how  to  command  it,  although  he  had  never 
given  an  order  in  his  life.  You  are  each,  with  all 
your  spiritual  forces,  detached  on  special  duty. 
You  are  veteran  soldiers  of  the  Cross  and  under 
marching  orders !  " 

Oconostota,  with  a  kingly  gesture,  signified  that 
the  interpreter  should  repeat  in  his  ear  this  dis 
course,  and  now  and  again  nodded  his  head  during 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          151 

its  translation  with  cogitation  and  interest,  and  as  if 
he  understood  and  approved  it.  He  watched  too, 
as  if  with  sympathy,  the  ranks  go  suddenly  down 
upon  their  knees,  as  the  commandant  read  the  col 
lect  for  the  day  followed  by  the  unanimous  delivery 
of  the  Lord's  prayer,  in  their  hearty,  martial  voices. 

After  the  tap  of  the  drum  had  given  a  resonant 
"  Amen  ! "  they  marched  off  upon  the  word  and 
broke  ranks ;  and  such  little  observance  as  the  fort 
could  offer  in  commemoration  of  the  event  was 
over. 

The  Indians  all  realized  this,  and  were  soon 
loitering  out  of  the  great  gate,  the  command 
ant  receiving  their  compliments  upon  the  good 
behavior  of  his  "  young  men  "  and  their  fine  appear 
ance,  an  elaborate  and  flowery  speech  of  farewell. 
Then  Oconostota  took  his  presents,  by  far  the  largest 
and  most  elaborate  of  the  collection,  and,  leaning 
on  Stuart's  arm,  left  the  fort,  the  officer  attending 
him  in  this  fashion  down  to  the  river-bank,  where  his 
pettiaugre  awaited  him.  Stuart  evolved,  apparently 
without  effort,  a  felicitous  phrase  of  farewell  and 
esteem,  graded  carefully  to  suit  the  rank  of  the 
other  head-men  who  followed  with  Captain  Demere 
and  several  lieutenants.  These  words,  Atta-Kulla- 
Kulla,  a  Cherokee  of  an  intelligent,  spirited  counte 
nance,  either  had  the  good  feeling  or  the  art  to 
seem  to  especially  value. 


152          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

"Such  smoke  as  goes  up  from  this  pipe  between 
my  face  and  your  face,  my  friend/*  he  said  through 
the  interpreter,  "  shall  never  come  between  you  and 
me.  I  shall  always  see  you  very  clear,  for  I  know 
your  heart.  Your  ways  are  strange;  you  come  from 
a  far  place ;  but  I  know  you  well,  for  I  know  your 
heart." 

He  laid  his  hand  for  a  moment  on  the  broad 
chest  of  the  red  coat  of  the  tall,  blond  officer,  then 
stepped  into  the  canoe,  and  the  little  craft  shoved 
off  to  join  a  very  fleet  of  canoes,  so  full  was  the 
shining  surface  of  the  river  of  Indians  who  had 
come  from  the  towns  above  to  the  celebration  of 
the  "  big  Sunday  "  *  at  the  fort. 

Captain  Stuart  felt  relieved  that  all  had  gone  off 
so  well  and  that  they  were  rid  of  the  Cherokees  for 
the  day. 

But  now  the  unforeseen  was  upon  him,  the  fatally 
uncovenanted  event  for  which  none  can  prepare.  An 
express  had  come  after  nightfall  from  over  the 
mountains,  bringing,  besides  the  mail,  rumors  of 
another  Indian  outbreak  on  the  South  Carolina 
frontier.  A  number  of  settlers  had  been  massacred, 
and  the  perpetrators  of  the  deed  had  escaped  unpun 
ished.  Stuart,  charging  the  man  to  say  nothing  of 
his  news  to  blight  the  Christmas  festivities  —  since 

*  The  Indians  in  North  Carolina  called  the  Christmas  holidays  Winick-kesbuxy 
or  "the  Englishman's  God's  moon." 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          153 

the  reports  might  not  be  true  —  sent  him  to  make 
merry  among  the  soldiers.  Anxiety  had  taken  pos 
session  of  that  stout  heart  of  Stuart's.  When  the 
settlers  had  begun  to  gather  to  the  ball,  the  earliest 
arrivals  brought  no  suggestion  of  difficulty.  The 
next  comers,  however,  had  seen  straggling  bands  of 
Indians  across  the  river,  but  they  were  mentioned 
casually  and  with  no  sense  of  premonition.  The 
guests  to  enter  last  had  been  somewhat  surprised 
to  notice  numbers  of  canoes  at  the  landing-place, 
and  presently  Captain  Stuart  was  called  aside  by  the 
officer  of  the  day,  who  stated  that  in  making  the 
rounds  he  had  learned  that  the  sentinel  at  the  gate 
had  reported  having  observed  bands  of  Indians  lurk 
ing  about  on  the  edge  of  the  woods,  and  that  quite 
a  number  had  come,  singly  and  in  groups,  to  the 
gate  to  demand  admission.  The  gathering  of  the 
white  people  had  roused  their  attention  evidently. 
They  had  always  held  the  cannon-mounted  fort  and 
the  presence  of  the  soldiery  as  a  menace,  and  they 
now  sought  to  discern  what  this  unprecedented 
assemblage  might  portend.  If  their  entrance  were 
resisted,  they  who  so  often  frequented  the  place, 
it  was  obviously  inimical  to  them.  They  had  heard 
—  for  the  transmission  of  news  among  the  Indians 
was  incredibly  swift  —  of  the  massacres  on  the  fron 
tier  and  feared  some  effort  at  reprisal.  The  scanty 
numbers  of  the  garrison  invited  their  blood-thirsty 


154          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

rapacity,  but  they  were  awed  by  the  cannon,  and 
although  entertaining  vague  ideas  concerning  the 
management  and  scope  of  artillery,  realized  its  terri 
ble  potencies. 

Perhaps  it  was  with  some  idea  of  forcing  an  en 
trance  by  surprise  —  that  they  might  be  within  the 
walls  of  the  fort  and  out  of  the  range  of  the  guns 
at  this  critical  juncture  of  the  massing  of  the  forces 
of  the  settlers  and  the  garrison  —  that  a  party  of 
thirty  or  forty  Cherokees  suddenly  rushed  past  the 
sentinel  on  the  counterscarp,  who  had  hardly  time 
to  level  his  firelock  and  to  call  lustily  on  the 
guard.  The  guard  at  once  turning  out,  the  sol 
diers  met  the  onset  of  the  savages  at  the  gate  and 
bore  them  back  with  the  bayonet.  There  was 
the  sudden,  quick  iterative  tramp  on  the  frozen 
ground  of  a  man  running  at  full  speed,  and  as  Stuart 
dashed  through  the  sally-port  he  called  out  "  Bar 
the  gates!  Bar  the  gates  !"  in  a  wild,  imperative 
voice. 

In  another  moment  he  was  standing  outside 
among  the  savages,  saying  blandly  in  Cherokee,  of 
which  he  had  mastered  sundry  phrases  — "  How 
now,  my  friends,  —  my  best  friends!"  and  holding 
out  his  hand  with  his  frank,  genial  manner  first  to 
one  of  the  Indians,  then  to  another. 

They  looked  upon  his  hand  in  disdain  and  spat 
upon  the  ground. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          155 

The  sentry  in  the  gate-house  above,  his  firelock 
ready  leveled  to  his  shoulder,  gazed  down  at  the 
officer,  as  he  stood  with  his  back  to  the  heavy  iron- 
spiked  oaken  gates  ;  there  was  light  enough  in  the 
reflection  of  the  snow,  that  made  a  yellow  moon, 
rising  higher  and  higher  into  the  blue  night  and 
above  the  brown,  shadowy  woods,  seem  strangely 
intense  of  color,  and  in  the  melancholy  radiation 
from  its  weird,  gibbous  disk  to  show  the  officer's 
calm,  impassive  face ;  his  attitude,  with  his  arms 
folded,  the  rejected  hand  withdrawn ;  even  the  gold 
lace  on  his  red  coat  and  the  color  of  his  hair  in  the 
thick  braid  that  hung  down  under  his  cocked  hat. 
Even  the  latent  expectation  might  be  discerned  in 
his  eyes  that  the  interval  of  silence  would  prove  too 
irksome  to  the  hot  impulse,  which  had  nerved  the 
rush  on  the  gates,  to  be  long  continued,  and  that 
the  moment  would  reveal  the  leader  and  the  pur 
pose  of  the  demonstration. 

A  Cherokee  stepped  suddenly  forward  —  a  man 
with  a  tuft  of  eagle  feathers  on  his  scalp-lock 
quivering  with  angry  agitation,  his  face  smeared 
with  vermilion,  clad  in  the  buckskin  shirt  and 
leggings  that  the  settlers  had  copied  from  the  Indi 
ans,  with  pistols  at  his  belt  as  well  as  a  firelock  in 
one  hand  —  the  barrel  sawed  off  short  to  aid  its 
efficacy.  The  air  was  bitterly  cold,  but  the  blood 
blazed  hot  in  his  face ;  in  Cherokee  he  spoke  and 


156          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

he  paused  for  no  interpreter ;  if  the  unaka  Captain 
did  not  understand  him,  so  much  the  worse  for 
the  unaka  Captain.  Through  his  teeth  the  tense 
swift  utterances  came  in  half-suppressed  breathless 
tones,  save  when  a  sudden  loud  exclamation  now 
and  again  whizzed  out  on  the  air  like  the  ascent  of 
a  bursting  rocket.  His  fury  was  such  that  even 
without  the  disguise  of  the  paint  on  his  face,  Stuart 
might  hardly  have  recognized  him  were  it  not  for 
his  peculiarly  sinewy,  slight  elegance  of  shape.  He 
had  advanced  one  foot  and  he  brandished  his  toma 
hawk  —  a  furious  gesture,  but  without  immediate 
intention,  for  now  and  again  he  thrust  the  weapon 
into  his  belt. 

"  The  white  captain  calls  on  his  friends  —  and 
where  are  they  ?  Not  on  the  outside  of  these  great 
guns  that  bar  us  from  our  own.  The  fort  is  ours  ! 
To-e-u-hah  !  It  is  our  own.  To-e-u-hab  !  *  Did  we 
not  bargain  for  it  in  solemn  treaty !  Did  we  not 
make  our  peace  and  smoke  our  pipe  and  give  our 
belts  of  white  wampum  and  sign  names  to  the  treaty 
we  made  with  the  white  English?  Wahkane?^ 
Did  we  not  join  his  cause  and  fight  his  battles  and 
shed  our  blood  in  his  wars  against  the  French  ? 
Wahkane,  John  Stuart,  wabkane?  And  for  what? 
That  the  great  King  George  should  build  us  some 
forts  in  our  nation  to  protect  our  women  and 

*  It  is  most  true.  f  Is  it  not  so  ? 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  157 

children,  our  old  men  and  our  young  boys  while 
the  Cherokee  braves  are  away  fighting  the  battles 
of  this  great  King  George  against  the  French  — 
yes,  and  to  make  strong  the  arm  of  our  warriors 
should  the  French  come  here  with  the  great 
guns  like  these,  that  make  naught  of  the  small 
gun,"  —  he  looked  scornfully  at  the  firelock  and 
shook  it  in  his  left  hand  — "  and  the  bow  and 
arrows  —  "  he  spat  upon  the  ground.  "  And  what 
does  the  great  Earl  of  London  ?  He  builds  this 
fort  for  which  we  have  paid  with  our  blood  !  blood  ! 
blood!  —  these  guns  bought  with  long  marches  and 
burnt  towns  and  the  despiteful  usage  of  the  Vir 
ginians" —  once  more  he  spat  upon  the  ground. 
"And  then  he  sends  his  redcoat  soldiers  to  hold 
our  fort  from  us  and  man  our  great  guns  and  be 
a  threat  and  a  danger  forever  to  our  peace  and 
make  us  slaves  to  the  fear  of  the  great  cannon  ! 
To-he-wab  !  To-be-wah  !  *  And  when  we  send  a 
talk  to  tell  him  this,  he  sends  more  soldiers  !  And 
the  white  men  gather  together  for  grief  to  the  red 
man,  and  take  the  Indians'  fort  paid  for  with  the 
Indians'  blood  and  turn  the  great  cannon  against 
him  who  bought  them  with  a  dear  price,  and  bar 
out  his  entrance  from  his  own" — the  foam  flew 
from  his  lips.  "You  call  on  your  friend  —  where? 

*  It  has  been  maintained  that  this  exclamation  constantly  used  by  the  Cherokees 
in  solemn  adjuration  signified  "Jehovah." 


158          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

He  turned  a  scornful  fiery  face  to  look  at  the 
scornful  fiery  faces  about  him.  "Where?" 

"  Here ! "  Captain  Stuart's  calm,  full  voice 
struck  the  vibrating  air  at  least  an  octave  lower 
than  the  keen,  high  vociferation  of  the  Cherokee. 
"  Here  is  my  friend !  That  is  the  moon,  Atta- 
Kulla-Kulla,  neus-se  a-nan-to-ge  "  *  —  he  lifted  his 
arm  and  with  his  debonair,  free  gesture  pointed  at  it. 
"Another  sun  has  not  risen.  And  yet  this  day, 
and  before  the  sun  was  high,  you  told  me  that 
naught  should  come  between  you  and  me.  You 
told  me  that  even  a  cloud  coming  between  you 
and  me  could  not  separate  us  because  you  knew 
my  heart — and  my  heart  swelled  with  pride  at 
your  words." 

He  hesitated  for  a  moment ;  he  detected  a  sudden 
change  in  the  Indian's  face.  "  My  heart  swelled 
with  pride,"  he  went  on,  firmly,  "for  I  believed 
you  !  And  I  believe  you  still,  for  "  —  he  laid  his 
hand  on  the  Cherokee's  breast  in  imitation  of  the 
gesture  of  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  as  he  repeated  Atta- 
Kulla-Kulla's  words  —  "  for  I  know  your  heart" 

There  was  a  moment  of  tense  silence.  Then  not 
waiting  for  the  dramatic  effect  to  be  lost,  he  con 
tinued  :  "  And  now,  if  you  say  it  is  not  well  to 
shut  the  gates  on  this  array  of  braves,  I  open  them  ! 
I  come  here  because  I  am  sent  —  a  unaka  soldier 

*  Literally  (i  the  sun  of  the  night." 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          159 

has  no  will  of  his  own.  He  is  held  to  a  strict  law, 
and  has  no  liberty  such  as  your  young  righting  men, 
who  sometimes  grow  rash,  however,  and  make  the 
wisdom  of  the  plans  of  your  c  beloved  men/  your 
sage  councils,  mere  folly.  The  Earl  of  Loudon  sent 
the  garrison  here.  Perhaps  if  you  send  a  c  talk ' 
to  the  new  head-man,  General  Amherst,  he  will  take 
the  soldiers  away.  I  go  or  stay  according  to  orders 
—  I  march  at  a  word.  But  to-night  the  children 
of  the  settlers  make  merry.  I  told  you  this  morn 
ing  of  our  religion.  This  day  is  the  festival  of  the 
Child.  So  the  children  make  merry  —  you  can 
hear  them  now  at  their  play."  And  indeed  there 
was  a  sharp,  wild  squealing  upon  the  air,  and  Stuart 
hoped  that  the  beat  of  the  dancing  feet  might  be 
supposed  to  be  of  their  making  and  the  sound  of 
the  music  for  their  behoof — for  the  dance  of  the 
Indians  often  heralds  war  and  is  not  for  sheer  joy. 
"The  parents  bring  them  here  and  share  their  mirth. 
For  this  is  the  festival  of  the  Child.  Now  your 
warriors  are  brave  and  splendid  and  terrible  to  look 
upon.  If  they  go  through  the  gates,  the  little  chil 
dren  would  be  smitten  with  fear ;  the  heart  of  a 
little  child  is  like  a  leaf  in  the  wind  —  so  moved  by 
fear.  Do  not  the  Cherokee  children  flee  from  me  — 
who  am  not  a  great  warrior  and  have  not  even  paint 
for  my  face  —  when  I  come  to  visit  you  at  Nachey 
Creek.  Say  the  word  —  and  I  open  the  gates." 


160          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

There  was  something  in  this  Cherokee  which 
Stuart  saw  both  then  and  afterward,  and  which  also 
attracted  the  attention  of  others,  that  indicated  not 
only  an  acute  and  subtle  intelligence  and  a  natural 
benignity,  but  a  wide  and  varied  scope  of  emotion, 
truly  remarkable  in  a  savage  without  education,  of 
course,  and  without  even  the  opportunity  of  ob 
serving  those  of  a  higher  culture  and  exercising 
sentiments  esteemed  of  value  and  grace  in  a  civil 
ized  appraisement.  Yet  he  was  experiencing  as 
poignant  a  humiliation  to  be  convicted  of  an  un 
generous  attitude  of  mind  and  upbraided  with  a 
protest  belied  as  if  he  had  been  a  Knight  of  the 
Round  Table,  bred  to  noble  thoughts  as  well  as  to 
chivalrous  deeds  of  arms,  and  had  never  taken  the 
scalp  of  a  child  or  treacherously  slain  a  sleeping 
enemy. 

Stuart  could  feel  the  Cherokee's  heart  beat  fast 
under  his  hand.  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  grasped  it  sud 
denly  in  his  own,  gripping  it  hard  for  a  moment, 
while  with  his  other  hand  he  waved  a  command  for 
his  men  to  retire,  which  they  did,  slowly,  with 
lowering,  surprised  eyes  and  clouded  brows. 

"  Go  back  !  "  he  said  to  Stuart.  "  Hold  the  gate 
fast.  You  make  your  feast.  Keep  it.  I  believe 
your  words.  And  because  — "  there  was  a  slight 
convulsion  of  his  features — "of  the  wicked  ways 
of  the  wicked  Earl  Loudon  I  have  forgot  to-night 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  161 

my  words  I  said  to-day,  I  say  them  again  —  and  I 
do  not  always  forget!" 

He  turned  suddenly  and  went  down  toward  the 
river,  the  sad,  yellow  moon  sending  his  brown, 
elongated  shadow  with  its  quivering  tuft  of  feathers 
far  along  the  stretches  of  white  snow.  Captain 
Stuart  paused  for  a  moment,  leaning  heavily  against 
the  gate ;  then  as  he  slipped  within  it  and  into  the 
shadow  of  the  wall,  he  was  full  glad  to  hear  the 
dancing  feet,  all  unconscious  of  the  danger  that  had 
been  so  near,  and  the  childish  treble  scream  of  the 
unscalped  children. 

"  A  little  more,  and  there  would  have  been  an 
other  massacre  of  the  innocents,"  he  said,  walking 
slowly  across  the  parade  ;  he  had  hardly  the  strength 
for  a  speedier  gait.  He  rescinded  the  order  con 
cerning  the  hour  at  which  "tattoo  "  and  "lights  out" 
should  sound.  "  For,"  he  thought,  noticing  the 
cheerful  groups  in  the  soldiers'  quarters,  "  I  could 
get  them  under  arms  much  more  quickly  if  awake 
than  by  drumming  them  up  out  of  their  beds  in 
barracks." 

He  carried  no  sign  of  the  agitation  and  the  sig 
nificance  of  the  interview  just  past  when  he  re 
turned  to  the  prismatic  tinted  swirl  of  the  dancing 
figures  in  the  flaring  light  of  the  great  fire,  made 
more  brilliant  by  the  glow  of  the  holly  boughs  and 
the  flutter  of  banners  and  the  flash  of  steel  from  the 


1 62          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

decorated  walls  about  them.  He,  too,  trod  a  gay 
measure  with  the  fair  Belinda  Rush,  and  never 
looked  more  at  ease  and  care-free  and  jovially  im 
perious  than  in  the  character  of  gallant  host.  Even 
in  the  gray  dawn  as  he  stood  at  the  sally-port  of 
the  fort  and  there  took  leave  of  the  guests,  as  group 
by  group  departed,  he  was  as  debonair  and  smiling 
throughout  the  handshaking  as  though  the  revels 
were  yet  to  begin. 


CHAPTER  VI 

BREAKFAST,  the  rigorous  cleaning  of  the 
quarters,  guard  mounting,  and  inspection, 
followed  in  their  usual  sequence,  but  the 
morning  drills  were  omitted  to  give  the  oppor 
tunity  to  recruit  from  the  vigils  of  the  previous 
night,  protracted,  as  the  soldiers  began  to  suspect, 
that  they  might  be  in  readiness  to  respond  to  an 
onslaught  of  the  savages.  For  Captain  Stuart 
made  no  effort  to  restrain  the  story  of  the  scene 
at  the  gate,  since  the  sentries  were  already  cognizant 
of  it ;  he  always  saw  fit  to  maintain  before  the 
troops  an  attitude  of  extreme  frankness,  as  if  the 
officers  suppressed  no  intelligence,  whatever  its 
character,  even  with  the  intention  of  conducing  to 
the  public  good. 

In  the  great  hall  in  the  block-house  of  the  north 
western  bastion,  when  the  officers  were  congregated 
about  the  fire,  in  the  rude  arm-chairs,  and  their  pipes 
lighted,  he  divulged  without  reserve  the  news  which 
the  express  had  brought.  In  an  instant  all  the  gar 
nered  sweetness  of  the  retrospect  of  the  little  holiday 
they  had  made  for  themselves  and  their  co-exiles 

163 


164          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

was  turned  to  gall.  It  even  held  bitter  dregs  of 
remorse. 

"  And  we  were  dancing  all  the  night  through 
while  you  knew  this  horrible  thing ! "  exclaimed 
Captain  Demere,  his  voice  tense  with  reproach. 

"  Lord  !  —  it  happened  three  weeks  ago,  Paul," 
returned  Stuart,  "if  it  happened  at  all!  Some  of 
the  settlers  had  already  come.  I  did  not  feel  quali 
fied  to  balk  the  children  and  the  young  people  of 
their  enjoyment — or  the  elders,  either.  The  world 
will  go  on  after  such  tragedies.  It  must,  you 
know."  He  pulled  at  his  pipe,  meditatively.  "  To 
have  called  a  halt  could  have  done  those  poor  fel 
lows  no  good,"  he  nodded  toward  the  south,  "and 
might  have  done  us  incalculable  harm.  There  had 
already  been  a  demonstration  of  the  Indians,  before 
the  express  came  in,  because  they  had  noticed  the 
gathering  of  the  guests,  and  I  thought  the  settlers 
safer  congregated  in  the  fort  until  daybreak  than 
going  home  scattered  through  the  night.  This  is 
no  time  or  place  to  give  ceremonious  deference  to 
questions  of  feeling." 

"Was  there  a  demonstration  of  the  Indians  last 
night,  Captain  ?  "  asked  Lieutenant  Gilmore. 

Stuart  detailed  both  occurrences  at  the  gate. 
"  Without  the  chiefs  guaranty  I  don't  see  how  we 
could  have  let  the  settlers  go  this  morning,"  he  con 
cluded. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          165 

Demere  frowned  deeply  as  he  sat  upright  in  his 
chair  and  gazed  at  the  fire. 

"  You  have  great  presence  of  mind  in  these  queer 
emergencies,  John,"  he  said.  "  For  my  life  I  could 
not  have  thought  how  to  get  rid  of  them  peaceably 
—  to  offer  to  open  the  gates !  " 

11 1  can't  soothe  the  Indians,"  said  Ensign  Whit- 
son,  with  a  quick  flush.  "  My  gorge  rises  at  the 
very  sight  of  them." 

"  If  a  dog  licks  my  hand,  I  must  needs  pat  him 
on  the  head,"  said  Stuart,  lounging  easily  among  the 
soft  rugs  that  covered  the  chair. 

"  But  if  a  wolf  licks  your  hand,  sir,  would  you 
pat  him  on  the  head  ?  "  asked  the  ensign. 

"A  wolf  will  not  lick  my  hand,"  retorted  the 
superior  officer.  "  Besides,  my  young  friend,  bear 
this  in  mind,  —  if  this  dog  is  not  patted  on  the 
head,  he  will  fly  not  only  at  my  throat,  but  at  the 
throat  of  the  garrison  and  of  the  settlement  as 
well." 

There  was  silence  for  a  time,  while  the  flames  of 
the  great  fire  sprang  elastically  upward  in  the  strong 
draught  with  an  impetuous  roar.  The  holly  boughs 
and  the  banners  stirred  fitfully  on  the  wall.  The 
men's  heads  were  surrounded  by  tobacco  smoke. 
Demere  sat  upright,  meditative,  with  one  elbow  on 
the  table.  Stuart  was  lolling  far  back  in  the  soft 
fur  rugs  that  covered  the  great  chair,  his  hat  on 


1 66          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

the  floor  behind  him,  where  it  had  fallen  off  his  dense, 
blond  hair,  which  so  much  attracted  the  curiosity 
and  admiration  of  the  swarthy  Indians. 

"And  then,"  he  said  suddenly,  drawing  some 
official  letter-books  and  files  from  the  table,  and 
fluttering  the  pages  with  one  hand  while  he  held 
the  pipe-stem  with  the  other,  "  were  we  not  ad 
monished  to  be  diplomatic  in  such  matters  ?  We 
had  our  orders  to  cultivate  the  graces  of  our  man 
ners  !  The  Earl  of  Loudon  desired  that  we  should," 
and  he  began  to  read  aloud,  " ( You  can  best  retain 
our  confidence  by  promoting,  in  every  way  in  your 
power,  the  preservation  of  peace  with  the  Chero- 
kees.' " 

He  shoved  the  papers  away  on  the  table,  and 
laughing,  put  the  stem  of  his  pipe  between  his  teeth. 

"  Now,"  he  said, "  I  am  as  much  disposed  toward 
peace  as  a  man  of  war  may  decently  be.  I  only 
wish  my  lord  could  have  won  Oconostota  to  his 
lordship's  pacific  way  of  thinking.  A  garrison  of 
two  hundred  soldiers  is  not  likely  to  prove  very 
overbearing  to  a  neighbor  who  can  muster  three 
thousand  fighting  men  armed  with  British  muskets. 
My  lord's  advice  was  timely." 

He  glanced  with  raillery  at  Demere,  and  laughed 
again. 

While  the  individual  soldier  is  but  a  factor  in  a 
great  machine,  and  moves  only  as  one  motor  element 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          167 

acts  and  reacts  on  another,  making  naught  of  his 
own  volition  or  intelligence,  it  being  his  "to  do  and 
die,"  the  courage  and  strength  of  character  which 
make  this  abnegation  of  will  and  mind  possible  are 
the  greater  from  the  fact  that  the  reasoning  facul 
ties  cannot  by  the  same  process  be  annulled.  He 
sees  the  convergence  of  the  circumstances  draw 
ing  to  the  event ;  whether  consciously  or  not  he 
deliberates  upon  the  validity  of  the  policy  unfolded  ; 
he  often  goes  to  meet  disaster,  perceiving  its  undis 
guised  approach  from  afar  off.  And  yet  he  goes 
unfalteringly. 

"When  our  government  armed  these  savage 
fiends  against  the  French,  —  civilized  men  and  pale 
faces'  like  ourselves,"  said  Captain  Demere,  "and 
the  American  colonists  fought  with  them  as  allies, 
side  by  side,  despite  their  hideous  barbarities,  we 
fell  upon  our  own  sword." 

"  Honors  are  easy,"  returned  Captain  Stuart, 
lightly.  "Have  the  French  armed  no  Indian  allies? 
Did  they  not  do  it  first  ? " 

"  We  are  not  wont  to  look  so  far  afield  for  our 
warrant,"  Demere  retorted  testily.  Then  resum 
ing  :  "  These  barbarous  beasts  are  no  fit  allies  for 
English  arms.  They  degrade  our  spirit,  and  destroy 
our  discipline,  and  disgrace  our  victories.  I  would 
rather  suffer  any  honorable  defeat  than  win  through 
their  savageries." 


1 68  The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

He  was  unconsciously  the  advance  guard  of  that 
sentiment  which  caused  the  Earl  of  Chatham,  nearly 
twenty  years  afterward,  to  declare  in  the  House  of 
Lords  that  it  was  a  reflection  on  the  honor  of  the 
nation  that  the  scalping-knife  and  the  tomahawk 
should  be  the  aids  of  the  British  firelock  and  sword, 
and  wreak  their  savage  deeds  under  the  sanction  of 
the  same  brave  banner ;  but  even  then  Lord  Gower 
was  able  to  retort  that,  when  still  Mr.  Pitt  the 
"great  Commoner,"  and  the  ruling  spirit  of  the 
ministry,  he,  himself,  had  without  scruple  employed 
American  savages  in  warfare.  As  yet,  however,  this 
objection  was  but  a  sensitive  protest  in  the  heart 
and  mind  of  an  obscure  officer,  the  commandant 
of  a  merely  temporary  post  on  the  furthest  western 
frontier.9 

The  papers  had  been  pushed  near  Demere's 
elbow,  and  he  began  to  look  over  them  disaf- 
fectedly. 

"  Hear  Governor  Lyttleton,"  he  said,  and  read 
in  a  tone  that  was  itself  a  commentary  :  " c  Use  all 
means  you  think  proper  to  induce  our  Indians  to 
take  up  the  hatchet.  Promise  a  reward  to  every 
man  who  shall  bring  in  the  scalp  of  a  Frenchman 
or  a  French  Indian/  ' 

"  As  if  one  could  be  sure  of  a  dead  man's  nation 
ality  or  allegiance  by  seeing  the  hair  on  his  scalp," 
said  Whitson,  as  ever  readily  disgusted. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  169 

Stuart  sought  to  take  an  unprejudiced  view.  "  I 
never  looked  upon  war  as  a  pastime  or  an  elegant 
accomplishment,"  he  declared,  watching  the  wreaths 
rise  from  the  deep  bowl  of  his  long  pipe.  "  War 
is  war,  and  when  we  call  it  civilized  we  only  mean 
that  invention  has  multiplied  and  elaborated  our 
methods  of  taking  life.  A  commander  can  but 
use  the  surest  means  to  his  end  against  his  enemy 
that  the  circumstances  afford.  A  soldier  is  at  best 
but  the  instrument  of  the  times." 

"And  what  of  the  torture,  the  knife,  the  fagot  ?" 
demanded  Demere,  excitedly.  "  What  do  you 
think  of  them  ?  " 

"I  never,  dear  Captain  Demere,  think  of  them, 
in  a  garrison  of  two  hundred  men  in  a  little  mud 
fort  on  the  frontier,  with  the  Cherokees  three  thou 
sand  strong  just  outside,  toward  whom  I  have  been 
admonished  to  mind  my  pretty  manners.  But  since 
you  are  so  keen  to  reason  it  out,  I  will  remind  you 
that  until  comparatively  recently  the  torture  was  one 
of  our  own  methods  of  punishment,  or  coercion, 
tending  to  the  disclosure  of  secret  conspiracies  or 
any  other  little  matter  that  the  government  might 
want  to  know  and  could  not  otherwise  find 
out,  and  was  practiced,  thumb-screws,  iron-boot, 
and  all,  in  the  worshipful  presence  of  men  of  high 
estate  —  councils,  commissions,  and  what  not ! 
Men  and  women  —  women,  too  !  —  have  been 


170          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

burned  alive  in  England  under  due  authority 
because  their  style  of  piety  was  not  acceptable. 
They  were  Christians,  to  be  sure,  but  not  exactly 
the  highest  fashion  of  Christian.  You  will  say  all 
this  was  long  ago.  Granted !  but  if  such  practices 
still  obtain  in  such  an  oligarchy  as  Oconostota's 
realm,  —  the  frontier  being,  paradoxically,  a  little  in 
the  rear  of  the  times,  —  should  we  be  surprised  ?  No  ! 
I  don't  think  of  such  things.  I  keep  my  mind  on 
the  discipline  of  the  garrison,  and  control  my  temper 
very  nicely  when  in  the  presence  of  the  Chero 
kee  kings,  and  bless  God  and  the  Earl  of  Loudon 
for  the  cannon  at  the  embrasures  and  the  powder 
and  ball  in  the  magazine." 

He  leaned  forward  suddenly  to  examine  with 
momentary  interest  the  sole  of  his  boot  as  he  sat 
with  his  leg  crossed,  then  with  a  bantering  "  Eh, 
Captain  Quawl  ? "  he  glanced  up  with  a  smile  of 
camaraderie  at  Captain  Demere  as  if  to  test  the 
effect  of  his  argument,  and  finally  laughed  outright 
at  his  friend's  silent  gravity. 

Such  arguments  were  the  ordinary  incidents  in 
the  great  hall  of  the  block-house  of  the  northwest 
bastion.  The  time  hung  heavily  on  the  hands  of 
the  officers  of  the  garrison.  For  beyond  the 
military  routine,  a  little  hunting  and  fishing,  a  little 
card  and  domino  playing,  a  little  bout  now  and 
again  of  fencing,  there  was  naught  to  relieve  the 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          171 

monotony,  for  books  were  few  and  the  express  with 
mail  from  over  the  mountains  infrequent,  and  there 
fore  discussions  in  familiar  conclave  on  abstract 
subjects,  protracted  sometimes  for  hours,  filled  the 
breach.  Often  these  questions  developed  on 
paper,  for  a  continual  correspondence,  as  regular 
as  might  be  compassed,  was  maintained  with  the 
officers  of  Fort  Prince  George,  another  frontier  post, 
estimated  as  three  hundred  miles  distant  from 
Charlestown,  yet  still  two  hundred  miles  from  Fort 
Loudon.  As  a  matter  of  public  policy  it  was 
deemed  expedient  that  the  commandants  of  the 
two  posts  should  keep  each  other  informed  as  to 
the  state  of  the  country  about  their  respective 
strongholds,  of  the  condition  of  the  settlers,  the 
temper  of  the  Indians,  the  masked  movements  of 
French  emissaries.  In  dearth  of  official  intelligence, 
as  the  express  necessarily  went  back  and  forth  with 
mail  and  dispatches  from  Charlestown,  the  corre 
spondence  sympathetically  expanded  into  personal 
interests,  for  the  conditions  surrounding  both  posts 
were  in  many  respects  similar.  Fort  Prince  George 
also  was  a  work  designed  with  special  reference  to 
the  military  needs  of  that  region  and  the  character 
of  its  possible  assailants.  The  defenses  consisted 
of  a  rampart  of  clay,  eight  feet  high,  surmounted 
by  a  strong  stockade,  forming  a  square  with  a 
bastion  at  each  angle ;  four  small  cannon  were 


172          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

mounted  on  each  bastion,  and  a  deep  ditch  sur 
rounded  the  whole ;  there  was  a  natural  glacis  where 
the  ground  fell  away  on  two  sides  of  the  quadrangle 
and  on  the  others  a  strong  abatis  had  been  con 
structed  at  a  short  distance  from  the  crest  of  the 
counterscarp.  Within  the  fort  were  two  block 
houses  and  barracks  for  a  garrison  of  one  hundred 
men. 

The  sequestered,  remote  situation  of  each  post 
developed  a  certain  mutual  interest  and  the  ex 
change  of  much  soldierly  chaff;  the  names  and 
disposition  of  even  the  subalterns  were  elicited  in 
this  transmitted  gossip  of  the  forts ;  in  default  of 
news,  details  of  trivial  happenings  were  given, 
unconsciously  fertile  in  character-drawing ;  jokes, 
caricatures,  good  stories,  —  and  thus  at  arm's  length 
sprung  up  a  friendship  between  men  who  had  never 
seen  one  another  and  who  were  possibly  destined 
never  to  meet.  Of  course  all  this  gayety  of  heart 
vanished  from  the  paper  when  serious  tidings  or 
despondent  prospects  were  at  hand,  but  even  in 
the  succinct  official  statements  an  undertone  of 
sympathy  was  perceptible,  and  the  slightest  nerve 
of  thought,  of  danger,  of  joy,  of  dissatisfaction 
touched  at  Fort  Loudon  thrilled  in  kind  at  Fort 
Prince  George. 

The  attention  of  the  group  about  the  fire  of  the 
officers'  mess-hall  had  seldom  been  brought  to 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  173 

themes  so  grave  as  the  news  of  the  recent  mas 
sacre,  holding  so  definite  and  possible  a  personal 
concern,  and  after  the  evening  of  the  Christmas  ball 
life  at  Fort  Loudon  began  to  seem  more  serious 
and  the  current  event  to  be  scanned  and  questioned 
as  to  a  probable  bearing  on  the  future. 

Even  Odalie's  optimistic  mind,  forever  alert  to 
hope  and  fair  presage,  felt  the  influence  of  the 
atmospheric  change  of  the  moral  conditions.  But 
the  fact  was  revealed  to  her  in  an  incident  suffi 
ciently  startling. 

That  morning  after  the  festivity,  when  gayly  row 
ing  down  the  bleak  river  to  MacLeod's  Station,  as 
the  bend  had  begun  to  be  called,  she  looked  blithely 
enough  over  the  stream's  gray  stretches  of  ruffled 
steel  to  the  snowy  slopes  of  the  banks,  and  to  the 
brown  woods,  and  beyond  to  the  dark  bronze  and 
dusky  blue  mountains  as  they  stretched  away  in 
varying  distance.  The  dull  sufFusive  flare  of  car 
mine  beginning  to  show  above  them  seemed  a 
spell  to  drive  the  day-star  out  of  the  sky,  to  bid 
the  weird  mists  hie  home  with  the  fancies  of  the 
night,  to  set  a  wind  keenly  astir  in  a  new  dawn.  All 
this  she  watched  with  eyes  as  clear,  as  soft,  as  con 
fiding  as  if  it  were  a  May  morning  coming  over 
the  mountains,  scattering  the  largesse  of  the 
spring  —  new  life,  new  hopes,  new  strength,  and 
all  the  glad  inspiration  of  success  that  has  a  rarer, 


174          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

finer  flavor  than  the  actual  consummation  of  the 
triumph. 

The  stationers  landed  at  the  bend,  and  she 
was  glad  of  her  home  as  she  took  her  way  within 
the  enclosure  of  the  high  stockade.  She  looked 
around  at  it,  still  leading  the  sleepy  Fifine  by  one 
hand  and  only  half  hearing  Hamish's  enthusiastic 
sketches  of  the  boys  and  girls  in  the  settlement,  with 
whom  he  had  made  fast  friends.  The  snow  was 
heavy  on  the  roofs  of  the  two  log  cabins  and 
the  shanty  of  poles  that  served  as  a  barn,  and  lay 
in  fluffy  masses  between  the  sharp  points  of  the 
palisades  and  on  the  bare  boughs  of  sundry  great 
trees  that  Odalie  had  insisted  should  not  be  cut 
away  with  the  rest  in  the  enclosure  or  "  girdled  " 
like  those  outside  in  the  field.  The  smoke  still 
curled  up  lazily  from  the  chimneys,  and  after  she 
had  uncovered  the  embers  and  donned  her  rough 
homespun  dress  and  housewifely  apron  and  cap, 
and  had  the  preparations  for  breakfast  well  under 
way,  she  went  to  the  door  and  called  aloud  in  the 
crisp,  chill  air  to  "  Dill,"  as  Gilfillan  was  christened 
by  Fifine,  —  the  name  being  adopted  by  all  the 
family,  —  insisting  that  he  should  not  cook  his  own 
breakfast  but  join  them. 

"There  are  going  to  be  '  flim-flams/  "  she  shouted 
triumphantly.  Then  with  a  toss  of  the  head  — 
"  Short  eating  ! " 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          175 

It  had  chanced  that  one  day  when  the  lonely 
pioneer  had  dined  with  his  fellow-stationers  he  had 
remarked  approvingly  of  certain  dishes  of  French 
cookery  acquired  from  her  Grand'maman's  receipts — 
"  I  dunno  what  ye  might  call  them  flim-.flams,  Mrs. 
MacLeod,  but  they  make  powerful  short  eatin'." 

He  and  she  and  Fifine  had  become  fast  friends, 
and  it  was  indeed  a  happy  chance  that  had  thrown 
the  lonely  man  into  this  cordial  and  welcoming  at 
mosphere  of  home.  Even  his  terribly  ghastly  head 
Odalie  had  begun  to  forget,  so  deeply  did  she  pity 
him  for  other  things,  —  for  the  loss  of  wife  and 
children  and  friends  in  the  terrible  Yadkin  mas 
sacre  ;  for  the  near  approach  of  age,  —  and  stalwart 
as  he  was,  it  was  surely  coming  on ;  for  the  distor 
tions  of  his  queer  religion,  which  was  so  uncouth  as 
to  be  rendered  hardly  the  comfort  it  might  have 
been  otherwise. 

"  I  can't  see  how  you  can  mention  it,"  she  said  one 
day,  with  wincing  eyes,  when  he  was  telling  Hamish, 
who  manifested  that  blood-thirsty  imagination  pe 
culiar  to  boys,  how  he  was  conscious  throughout 
the  whole  ordeal  of  scalping ;  how  the  tomahawk 
hit  him  a  clip;  how  the  Indian,  one  whom  he 
had  trusted,  put  his  foot  on  his  breast  for  a  better 
purchase  on  the  knife. 

"  Why,  Mrs.  MacLeod,"  Dill  replied,  "  it  makes 
me  thankful  to  think  he  took  nothing  but  the  scalp. 


ij6          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

If  he  had  mended  his  holt  a  little  he  could  have 
took  my  whole  head,  and  where  would  I  have  been 
now ! " 

"  By  the  grace  of  God  you  would  be  a  saint  in 
Paradise,"  said  Odalie,  presenting  the  orthodox 
view. 

"Yes,"  he  admitted,  "I've  always  feared  there 
might  be  more  in  that  notion  of  the  Injuns  about 
the  scalpless  being  shut  out  of  heaven  than  we 
know  about  —  revelation,  mebbe." 

"  No,  no  ! "  and  horrified  at  this  interpretation 
she  made  her  meaning  clear. 

After  that  she  undertook  the  role  of  missionary 
in  some  sort,  and  in  quiet  unobtrusive  ways  sug 
gested  bits  of  orthodox  doctrine  of  much  solace  to 
his  ruminating  spirit,  and  sometimes  on  dreary,  ice 
bound  days  he  and  she  and  Fifine  sat  on  the  crudely 
fashioned  benches  before  the  fire  and  sang  psalms 
and  hymns  together  till  the  station  rang  with  the 
solemn  choiring. 

"  Dill "  came  in  now,  bringing  his  own  knife  for 
breakfast,  and  a  very  cheery  face  under  his  coonskin 
cap  and  red  handkerchief,  and  when  the  "  short  eat 
ing  "  was  disposed  of  all  three  men  took  their  axes 
to  chop  up  a  tree  for  fuel,  close  outside  the  stock 
ade,  for  the  great  chimney-places  had  capacious  maws, 
and  the  weather  was  fast  hardening  to  a  freeze. 

Presently  Odalie  heard  the  quick  strokes  of  their 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  177 

axes,  alternating  with  sharp  clangs,  the  blows  ring 
ing  out  briskly  on  the  icy  air.  The  house  was  very 
still.  Fifine  had  fallen  asleep  on  the  rug  before  the 
fire,  having  peevishly  declined  the  folly  of  being 
disrobed  and  put  to  bed  in  the  daytime,  to  recuper 
ate  from  the  exhaustion  attendant  upon  her  first 
ball.  As  she  could  not  stay  awake  without  whim 
pering,  Odalie  saw  with  satisfaction  her  little  dis 
torted  countenance,  round  head,  and  chubby  body 
collapse  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  fireplace.  Oda 
lie  herself  sat  down  to  rest  for  one  moment  on  the 
befrilled  block  of  wood  which  she  complimented 
by  calling  a  tabouret.  Once  she  roused  herself, 
smoothed  out  the  expanse  of  her  white  apron  over 
her  blue  homespun  dress,  then  careful  to  permit  the 
attitude  to  foster  no  crumple  in  her  stiff,  sheer, 
white  mob-cap  on  the  lustrous  folds  of  dark  hair, 
she  leaned  her  head  against  the  rude  chimney. 

How  long  she  sat  there  she  did  not  know. 
While  sleeping  she  saw  the  faces  of  Indians,  and 
when  she  gradually  woke  she  thought  she  still 
slept.  For  there  beside  the  fire  were  the  Indian 
faces  of  her  dream  !  She  was  stifled  and  dumbly 
sought  to  cry  out,  for  this  was  surely  some  terror 
of  the  nightmare.  But  no  !  without  was  the  light 
of  the  wan  wintry  day,  showing  in  a  vague  blear  at 
the  half-open  door,  and  within,  the  dull  glow  of  the 
fire,  sunken  now  to  a  vermilion  mass  of  embers. 


178          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

On  the  opposite  side  of  the  hearth  lay  Fifine  on  the 
rug,  sleeping  still,  with  the  sleeping  cat  in  her  arms 

—  and  between  were  Indian  faces,  the  Indian  faces 
of  her  dream  ! 

Odalie  breathed  more  freely,  for  they  were 
women's  faces  —  two  women,  muffled  to  the  ears  in 
red  blankets,  were  calmly  seated  on  the  rug  be 
fore  the  fire  as  if  they  had  long  been  there  gaz 
ing  at  her  with  blank,  expressionless  faces.  She 
still  heard  the  regular  strokes  of  the  axes  of  the  men 
of  the  station,  as  just  outside  the  stockade  they 
resolutely  pursued  the  chopping  of  the  tree.  She 
could  not  understand  how  the  two  women,  unob 
served  by  them,  had  slipped  in  at  the  open  gate ; 
Odalie  was  able  to  smile  faintly  at  a  prevision  of 
Sandy's  amazement  at  his  own  negligence. 

One  of  the  Indian  women  smiled  in  return,  a 
bright-eyed  demonstration,  and  suddenly  Odalie 
remembered  the  young  Cherokee  beauty  she  had 
noted  at  the  sally-port,  watching  the  parade,  the  day 
after  her  arrival  at  Fort  Loudon.  The  other,  en 
couraged,  began  to  speak,  and  to  speak  in  French 

—  a    curious,   dislocated  patter.     Asking   how   she 
had   acquired   the  language,    Odalie  was    informed 
that  this  was  the  squaw  of  Savanukah,  and  that  he 
had  journeyed  as  guide  and  hunted  much  with  a 
French  trader  who  had    formerly  dwelt  at  Chote, 
and  hearing  them  talk  the  squaw,  too,  had  learned. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          179 

"  And  how  did  you  know  that  I  speak  French  ?  " 
asked  Odalie. 

The  elder  woman  pointed  at  the  girl,  who  laughed 
and  tucked  down  her  head  like  a  child.  She  was 
obviously  solicitous  that  Odalie  should  observe  the 
many  strings  of  red  beads  about  her  neck  ,•  these 
she  now  and  again  caught  in  her  fingers  and  drew 
forward,  and  then  looked  down  at  them  with  her 
head  askew  like  a  bird's.  Odalie,  with  ready  tact, 
let  her  eyes  rest  attentively  on  them,  and  smiled 
again.  Her  instinct  of  hospitality  was  so  strong 
that  it  was  no  effort  to  simulate  the  gracious  hostess. 
It  was  one  of  Hamish's  stock  complaints,  often  pre 
ferred  in  their  former  home  when  visitors  were  an 
intrusion  and  their  long  lingering  a  bore,  that  if  the 
Enemy  of  Mankind  himself  should  call,  Odalie 
would  be  able  to  muster  a  smile,  and  request  him 
to  be  seated,  and  offer  him  a  fan  of  her  best  turkey 
feathers,  and  civilly  hope  that  the  climate  of  his 
residence  was  not  oppressive  to  him  ! 

"And  how  do  you  know  that  I  am  French  ? "  she 
asked,  with  a  delightful  expression  of  her  fascinat 
ing  eyes. 

The  soldier  had  told  her,  —  the  handsome  young 
brave  who  talked  to  her  one  day  at  Chote,  —  the 
girl  said  in  fairly  good  English.  Odalie  asked  her 
name,  and,  as  it  was  given,  exclaimed  that  it  was 
a  whole  sentence.  Both  the  Cherokee  women 


180          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

laughed  at  this  in  the  pleasure  of  camaraderie^  and 
the  elder  translated  the  name  as  the  "  Wing  of  the 
flying  Whip-poor-will."  The  young  Indian  girl 
came  to  be  known  afterward  at  MacLeod's  Station 
as  Choo-qualee-qualoo,  the  Cherokee  word  which 
imitates  the  note  of  the  bird.  Recurring  to  the  sub 
ject,  she  attempted  to  describe  the  soldier,  by  way 
of  identification,  as  having  hair  the  color  of  the  lace 
on  the  Captain's  red  coat.  Odalie  was  able  to  recol 
lect  a  certain  smart  young  soldier,  who  as  orderly 
had  one  day  accompanied  Captain  Stuart  on  a  visit 
of  ceremony  to  Oconostota,  at  his  seat  of  govern 
ment  at  Chote  —  old  town.  While  the  young  or 
derly  had  led  the  horse  of  the  English  Captain  up 
and  down  before  the  door  of  the  chief's  great  coun 
cil-house,  Choo-qualee-qualoo  had  been  set  to  ask 
him  some  questions,  and  as  she  told  this  the  little 
minx  laughed  with  her  sharp  white  teeth  shining, 
and  looked  like  some  sly  little  animal,  malevo 
lent,  yet  merry,  and  of  much  grace.  Willinawaugh, 
she  continued,  believed  that  he  had  been  duped  by 
MacLeod  into  affording  him  and  his  family  safe 
conduct  on  his  journey  hither,  under  the  pretext 
that  he  was  French,  and  therefore  an  enemy  to  the 
English,  whom  Willinawaugh  hated ;  for  the  new 
comer,  MacLeod,  and  his  brother,  had  been  suffered 
to  build  a  house  and  settle  here  among  the  English, 
while  if  Frenchmen  they  would  have  been  hung  as 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  181 

spies  at  the  great  gate  of  the  fort  or  sent  direct  to 
Charlestown  as  prisoners.  So  Willinawaugh  had 
set  her  to  weave  her  toils  about  the  young  soldier 
and  discover  the  truth  from  him,  as  he  walked  the 
officer's  fine  horse  up  and  down,  and  the  tall  Eng 
lish  Captain  and  the  great  warrior,  Oconostota, 
smoked  their  pipes  in  the  council  chamber.  Thus 
it  had  chanced  that  the  unsuspicious  orderly,  free 
with  his  tongue,  as  a  young  man  is  apt  to  be  in  the 
presence  of  a  pretty  girl,  told  all  that  Choo-qualee- 
qualoo  asked  to  know,  as  far  as  he  knew  it  himself, 
and  sooth  to  say,  a  trifle  further.  He  gave  forth 
the  fact  that  MacLeod  was  English — that  is  Scotch, 
which  he  made  as  one  of  the  same  tribe,  and  so  was 
the  brother.  But  the  wife  was  French  —  he  himself 
had  overheard  her  talking  the  frog-eaters'  lingo  — 
and,  by  George,  she  was  a  stunner !  The  baby  was 
hers,  and  thus  a  mixture  of  English  and  French ; 
as  for  the  cat,  he  could  not  undertake  to  pronounce 
upon  the  animal's  nationality,  for  he  had  not  the 
pleasure  of  the  acquaintance  of  its  parents. 

Choo-qualee-qualoo  laid  down  this  last  proposition 
with  a  doubting  gravity,  for  the  young  man  had 
promulgated  it  as  if  with  a  sense  of  its  importance 
and  a  weighty  soberness,  although  he  laughed  at 
most  that  he  said  himself  and  at  everything  that 
any  one  else  said. 

He   saw   fit   to   remark  that  he   did   not  under- 


1 82          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

stand  how  that  sober-minded  Sawney  —  meaning  the 
Scotchman  —  had  ever  contrived  to  capture  such 
a  fine  woman,  but  that  was  always  the  way  with 
these  dull  prigs.  Now  as  for  such  rattling  blades 
as  himself  and  his  Captain  —  who  would  have  been 
disposed  to  lay  the  flat  of  his  sword  smartly  across 
the  shoulders  of  the  orderly,  could  he  have  dreamed 
of  mention  in  such  irreverent  fellowship  —  they  had 
no  chance  with  the  women,  and  for  his  own  part 
this  made  him  very  sad.  And  he  contrived  to  look 
so  for  about  a  minute,  as  he  led  the  Captain's  horse 
up  and  down  before  the  door  of  the  council-house, 
while  Choo-qualee-qualoo,  at  one  end  of  his  beat, 
stood  among  a  clump  of  laurel  and  talked  to  him 
as  he  came  and  went,  and  Willinawaugh,  in  the 
shadowy  recesses  of  a  neighboring  hut,  watched 
through  the  open  door  how  his  scheme  took 
effect. 

It  made  him  very  sad,  the  soldier  said,  mourn 
fully,  for  the  girls  to  like  other  fellows  better  than 
him  —  as  they  generally  did  ! 

And  Choo-qualee-qualoo  broke  off  to  say  here 
that  she  did  not  discern  why  such  preference  should 
be,  for  this  soldier's  hair  was  the  color  of  the  Cap 
tain's  gold  lace  on  his  red  coat  (the  orderly  was 
called  "  Carrots  "  by  his  comrades),  and  he  had  a 
face  with  —  and  at  a  loss  she  dabbled  the  tips  of 
her  fingers  delicately  about  the  bridge  of  her  nose 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  183 

and  her  eyes  to  intimate  the  freckles  on  his  fair 
skin,  which  beauty-spots  she  evidently  admired. 

The  Scotchman's  French  wife  was  a  stunner,  the 
orderly  was  good  enough  to  declare  again,  and  every 
body  else  thought  so  too.  But  he  had  overheard 
Captain  Demere  say  to  Captain  Stuart  that  her 
husband  had  no  right  to  bring  her  to  this  western 
wilderness,  and  that  that  terrible  journey  of  so  many 
hundred  miles,  keeping  up  on  foot  with  men,  was 
enough  to  have  killed  her  ;  and  Captain  Stuart  had 
replied  that  she  would  make  a  fine  pace-setter  for 
infantry  in  heavy  marching  order.  The  orderly 
protested  that  for  his  part,  if  he  were  a  condemned 
fine  woman  like  that,  he  wouldn't  live  in  a  wilder 
ness  —  he  would  run  away  from  the  Scotchman  and 
go  back  to  wherever  she  came  from.  Handsomest 
eyes  he  ever  saw  —  except  two  eyes  I 

Here  Choo-qualee-qualoo  gave  Odalie  a  broadside 
glance  which  left  no  doubt  as  to  whose  eyes  this 
exception  was  supposed  to  refer,  and  put  two  or  three 
strands  of  the  red  beads  into  her  mouth,  showing 
her  narrow  sharp  teeth  as  she  laughed  with  pleasure 
and  pride. 

Thus  it  was  that  Odalie  was  apprised  of  the  fact 
that  she  was  regarded  by  the  Indians  as  a  French 
prisoner  in  the  hands  of  the  English,  and  that  the 
young  soldier's  use  of  the  idea  of  capture  by  her 
husband,  figuratively,  as  in  the  toils  of  matrimony, 


1 84          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

was  literally  construed.  Her  first  impulse  was  to 
repudiate  this  suggestion  of  captivity,  of  detention 
against  her  will.  Then  her  strong  instinct  of  wis 
dom, —  for  she  had  no  foresight  in  the  matter, — 
that  made  Hamish  sometimes  charge  her  with  being 
as  politic  as  Captain  Stuart  himself,  moved  her  to 
reserve  this  detail  for  the  consideration  of  the  com 
mandant  of  the  fort,  as  every  matter,  however 
trivial,  that  bore  upon  the  growing  enmity  of  the 
Cherokees  toward  the  English  amongst  them,  and 
their  disposition  to  fraternize  with  the  French,  was 
important. 

The  two  captains  listened  with  serious  attention 
when  she  detailed  this  conversation  to  them,  having 
repaired  to  the  fort  for  the  purpose,  and  being 
received  as  a  guest  of  much  distinction  in  the  great 
hall,  summarily  cleared  of  the  junior  officers,  and, 
not  so  summarily,  of  the  clouds  of  tobacco  smoke. 
They  both  instantly  commended  her  course  in  leav 
ing  the  impression  on  the  minds  of  the  Indian 
women  as  it  had  chanced  to  be  made,  and  in  dis 
missing  them  in  unimpaired  good  humor  with  some 
little  presents  —  a  tiny  mirror  set  locket-wise  and 
an  ivory  bobbin  wound  around  with  red  thread. 
The  women  had  evidently  derived  special  pleasure 
from  the  slyness  and  presumable  secrecy  of  their 
interview,  skulking  out  with  a  craft  of  concealment 
that  completely  eluded  the  notice  of  Sandy  and 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  185 

"  Dill,"  and  this  had  given  Odalie  a  sense  of  dis 
approbation  and  repulsion. 

"  Why  should  you  care  ?  "  demanded  Demere, 
always  sympathetic  with  a  woman's  whim-whams, 
even  when  he  could  not  feel  with  them.  "  No 
amount  of  explanation  could  enable  the  Indian 
women  to  comprehend  the  situation  from  your 
standpoint." 

And  Captain  Stuart  could  not  restrain  his  laughter 
at  her  discomfiture. 

"  Do  you  consider  yourself  so  free,  then  ?  Do 
you  call  it  freedom  —  in  the  holy  bonds  of  matri 
mony  ?  I  had  no  idea  how  much  you  object  to 
hear  the  clanking  of  your  chains !  " 

As  he  noted  her  long-lashed  glance  of  disdain,  — 
"  Doesn't  the  holy  Scripture  call  it  a  c  yoke/  "  he 
persisted,  bursting  out  laughing  afresh. 

She  would  not  reply  but  sat  listening  to  Captain 
Demere,  who  began  to  reason,  —  "  This  impression 
on  the  part  of  the  Cherokee  women  might  afford  us 
—  I  don't  know  how  —  some  means  of  learning  and 
frustrating  the  treacherous  plans  of  the  savages.  It 
gives  us  a  source  of  information  through  you  that 
we  can  trust." 

"  I  don't  relish  the  deceitful  part  assigned  to 
me,"  she  protested. 

"  What  would  we  do  with  any  information,  Mrs, 
MacLeod,  supposing  we  gain  aught  of  value,"  re- 


1 86          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

turned  Demere  with  some  haughtiness,  <f  except  to 
use  it  for  the  defense  of  the  fort,  and  your  own  out 
lying  station  ?  Are  we  here  to  wage  war  or  to  main 
tain  peace  ?  " 

She  was  silent,  a  trifle  mortified  because  of  her 
own  mortification  to  be  supposed  a  mere  captive. 

"  Everybody  else  knows  that  you  are  the  com 
manding  officer  at  MacLeod's  Station,"  said  Stuart 
in  pretended  consolation,  only  half  smothering  a 
laugh. 

"  Besides/*  Demere  argued,  gravely,  "  you  will 
never  be  able  to  convince  them  of  the  facts.  Of 
course  you  know  I  intend  no  disparagement  to  you 
when  I  say  they  will  believe  that  young  soldier's 
rodomontade  in  preference  to  your  word  —  being 
women  of  such  extreme  ignorance." 

"  Why,  the  man  ought  to  be  gagged!  "  exclaimed 
Stuart,  in  delight  at  her  seriousness. 

The  color  mounted  to  Odalie's  cheek.  She  had 
but  entered  her  twenties,  and  despite  her  matronly 
arrogations  she  felt  very  young,  now  and  then. 
Notwithstanding  her  humble  pioneer  status,  she 
retained  much  of  the  aristocratic  traditions  inherited 
from  her  "Grand'maman";  she  was  beginning  to  feel 
it  a  great  liberty  that  the  young  orderly  should  have 
expressed  his  admiration  of  her,  although  of  course 
he  was  not  aware  that  it  would  be  repeated.  She 
objected  that  he  should  know  that  she  knew  of  it. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          187 

"  I  hope  you  will  not  acquaint  him  with  the  cir 
cumstances,"  she  said,  stiffly. 

"  By  no  means/'  said  Demere,  appreciating  her 
scruples.  "  That  sort  of  thing  is  beyond  discipline. 
The  men  in  a  garrison  will  tell  everything  they 
know  or  think  they  know/* 

Odalie  sat  for  a  moment  longer.  "  I  think,"  she 
said,  recovering  her  equanimity  after  a  fashion, 
"  that  since  I  immediately  placed  the  information  of 
this  ludicrous  contretemps  at  your  disposal,  for  what 
ever  you  may  make  it  worth,  I  should  be  promised 
exemption  from  the  kind  of  raillery  —  and  jokes  — 
which  Captain  Stuart  —  frequent  mention  of  chains, 
and  bond-slave,  and  matrimonial  noose  and  —  such 
things,"  she  paused,  rising  and  looking  at  Stuart, 
wistfully  remonstrant,  for  she  could  but  notice  how 
her  chagrin  ministered  to  his  mischievous  delight. 

"  How  can  you,  Mrs.  MacLeod! "  he  cried. 
"  Captain  c  Quawl  *  will  have  me  clapped  into  irons 
at  the  first  offence !  And  this  is  the  vaunted  ten 
der-heartedness  of  women ! " 

Even  Captain  Demere  joined  in  the  laugh  at 
her,  only  becoming  grave  to  insist  that  she  should 
not,  without  notice  to  him,  divulge  the  fact  that  she 
was  not  French,  but  of  Carolinian  birth  and  parent 
age,  and  the  further  fact  —  and  his  serious  face 
relaxed  —  that  she,  herself,  was  the  commandant  at 
MacLeod's  Station,  and  that  Sandy  and  Hamish, 


1 88          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

Fifine  and  "  Dill,"  were  the  mere  minions  of  her 
power. 

She  found  discretion  the  better  part  of  valor,  and 
thought  it  wise  to  laugh  a  little  at  herself  and  her 
own  pride,  although  the  dimples  came  and  went  in 
very  red  cheeks,  and  her  eyes  were  so  bright  as 
they  rested  on  the  merry  face  of  the  big  blond  offi 
cer  that  they  might  be  said  to  flash.  She  diverted 
with  difficulty  Hamish's  attention  from  Captain 
Demere's  half-finished  map  on  the  table  at  the 
other  end  of  the  room,  over  which  the  boy  had 
been  poring  during  the  entire  interview,  and  then 
they  took  their  leave. 

Little  did  any  of  the  party  realize  how  important 
the  mistaken  impression  of  the  Cherokee  women 
was  to  prove! 


CHAPTER   VII 

THE  winter  wore  gradually  away.  While 
the  snows  were  still  on  the  ground,  and 
the  eastern  mountain  domes  were  glittering 
white  against  a  pale  blue  sky,  all  adown  the  nearer 
slopes  the  dense  forests  showed  a  clear  garnet  hue, 
that  betokened  the  swelling  of  congregated  masses 
of  myriads  of  budding  boughs.  Even  the  aspect  of 
more  distant  ranges  bespoke  a  change,  in  the  dull 
soft  blue  which  replaced  the  hard  lapis-lazuli  tint  that 
the  chill,  sharp  weather  had  known.  For  the  cold 
had  now  a  reviviscent  tang  —  not  the  bleak,  be 
numbing,  icy  deadness  of  the  winter's  thrall.  And 
while  the  flames  still  flared  on  the  hearth,  and  the 
thumping  of  the  batten  and  the  creak  of  the  treadle 
resounded  most  of  the  day  from  the  little  shed-room 
where  Odalie  worked  at  her  loom,  and  the  musical 
whir  of  her  spinning-wheel  enlivened  all  the  fire-lit 
evenings  as  she  sat  in  the  chimney  corner,  the 
thaws  came  on,  and  brought  the  mountain  snows 
down  the  Tennessee  River  with  a  great  rushing 
turbulence,  and  it  lifted  a  wild,  imperious,  chanting 
voice  into  the  primeval  stillness.  A  delicate  vernal 

189 


190          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

haze  began  to  pervade  the  air,  and  a  sweet  placidity, 
as  if  all  nature  were  in  a  dream,  not  dead,  —  an  ex 
pectant  moment,  the  crisis  of  development.  Now 
and  again  Odalie  and  Fifine  would  come  to  the 
door,  summoned  by  a  loud  crackling  sound,  as  of  a 
terrible  potency,  and  watch  wincingly  the  pervasive 
flare  of  the  great  elastic  yellow  and  vermilion  flames 
springing  into  the  air  from  the  bonfires  of  the  piles 
of  cane  as  the  cleared  land  was  transformed  from 
the  cane-brake  into  fields.  And  soon  the  ploughs 
were  running.  Oh,  it  was  spring  in  this  loveliest 
of  regions,  in  this  climate  of  garnered  delights ! 
As  the  silvery  sycamore  trees,  leaning  over  the 
glittering  reaches  of  the  slate-blue  river,  put  forth 
the  first  green  leaves,  of  the  daintiest  vernal  hue, 
Odalie  loved  to  gaze  through  them  from  the  door 
of  the  cabin,  perchance  to  note  an  eagle  wing  its 
splendid  flight  above  the  long,  rippling  white 
flashes  of  the  current ;  or  a  canoe,  as  swift,  as  light, 
cleave  the  denser  medium  of  the  water;  or  in  the 
stillness  of  the  noon  a  deer  lead  down  a  fawn  to 
drink.  She  was  wont  to  hear  the  mocking-bird 
pour  forth  his  thrilling  ecstasy  of  song,  the  wild 
bee  drone,  and  in  the  distance  the  muffled  booming 
thunder  of  the  herds  of  buffalo.  Who  so  quick  to 
see  the  moon,  this  vernal  moon,  —  surely  not  some 
old  dead  world  of  lost  history,  and  burnt-out  hopes, 
and  destroyed  utilities,  but  fair  of  face,  virginal  and 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          191 

fresh  as  the  spring  itself,  —  come  down  the  river  in 
the  sweet  dusk,  slowly,  softly,  pace  by  pace,  ethere 
ally  refulgent,  throwing  sparse  shadows  of  the  newly 
leaved  sycamore  boughs  far  up  the  slope,  across  the 
threshold  that  she  loved,  with  the  delicate  traceries 
of  this  similitude  of  the  roof-tree. 

"  Oh,  this  is  home  !  home  !  "  she  often  exclaimed, 
clasping  her  hands,  and  looking  out  in  a  sort  of 
solemn  delight. 

"  Why  don't  you  say  that  in  French,  Odalie  ? " 
Hamish  would  mischievously  ask.  For  his  re 
searches  into  the  mysteries  of  the  French  language, 
although  not  extensive,  had  sufficed  to  acquaint  him 
with  the  fact  that  the  tongue  has  no  equivalent  for 
this  word,  and  to  furnish  him  with  this  home-thrust, 
as  it  were.  Odalie,  always  rising  with  spirit  to  the 
occasion,  would  immediately  inquire  if  he  had  seen 
or  heard  of  Savanukah  lately,  and  affect  to  be 
reminded  to  urge  him  to  put  himself  in  prepa 
ration  to  be  able  to  stand  an  examination  in  French 
by  that  linguistic  authority  by  conjugating  the  re 
flective  verb  S'amuser.  "  So  much  you  might, 
Hamish,  amuse  yourself  with  Savanukah." 

"  I  am  not  disturbed,  now,"  Hamish  would  de 
clare,  "  since  we  have  made  interest  with  the  family. 
I'd  just  get  your  friend,  Mrs.  Savanukah,  to  inter 
cede  for  me." 

For  Odalie  had  to  run  the  gauntlet  of  a  good 


192          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

deal  of  merriment  in  the  family  circle  because  of  her 
close  acquaintance  with  the  Indian  women.  Their 
visits  annoyed  her  extremely.  If  she  went  for  an 
afternoon's  talk  -with  Belinda  Rush,  —  the  two 
had  become  fast  friends,  —  she  deprecated  leaving 
her  scanty  store  of  possessions  lest  their  dainty 
order  be  disturbed  by  the  Indian  intruders  in  her 
absence.  She  dared  not  quit  Fifine,  whom  it  was 
sometimes  inconvenient  to  take,  even  though  the 
child's  father  was  inside  the  stockade,  lest  she  be 
kidnapped,  so  covert  and  sly  was  their  slipping  in 
and  out,  for  somehow  they  were  never  discovered 
at  the  moment  of  entrance.  Nevertheless,  she 
treated  her  Cherokee  callers  with  such  sweet  patient 
courtesy  that  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  that  they 
came  again  and  again.  She  gave  them  trifles  that 
she  could  spare,  and  a  share  of  the  seeds  of  vege 
tables  which  she  had  brought  with  her,  and  this 
they  received  with  real  and  unfeigned  gratitude,  for 
the  women  were  the  gardeners  among  the  Cherokees 
and  the  tillers  of  the  soil. 

Odalie  herself  had  that  strong  nerve  of  sympathy 
with  the  springing  growths  of  the  earth  that  made 
every  turned  furrow  of  the  rich  mould  a  delight  to 
her.  It  was  not  work — it  partook  of  the  nature  of  a 
pastime,  wrought  for  the  love  of  it,  when  following 
her  husband's  plough  she  dropped  the  Indian  corn 
and  covered  it  with  her  hoe.  She  loved  the  soft, 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          193 

tender,  sprouting  blades,  as  they  put  strongly  forth  ; 
she  loved  hardly  less  the  quickly  springing  weeds 
even  as  she  cut  them  mercilessly  away  with  her  hoe. 
She  loved  the  hot  sun,  and  the  clear,  fresh  wind  that 
came  rushing  down  the  rushing  river,  and  the  deli 
cious  delicate  perfume  of  its  waterside  ferns,  and  the 
cool,  sleeping  shadows  in  the  dark  mysteries  of  the 
woods,  and  the  solemnity  of  the  great  mountains  on 
the  eastern  horizon,  and  the  song  of  a  thrush  in 
mid-air  above  it  all.  And  when  the  clouds  gathered 
and  came  the  soft,  soft  falling  of  the  steady  spring 
rain,  she  loved  the  interval  it  afforded  for  the  setting 
of  things  in  order  within,  and  once  more  she  and 
Hamish  and  Fifine  and  the  cat  were  congregated  on 
the  buffalo  rug  in  front  of  the  fire,  which  had  dwindled 
to  an  ember  kept  from  meal  to  meal,  to  sort  treas 
ures  brought  with  them  in  the  small  compass  of  a 
buffalo  horn,  —  seeds  now,  the  seeds  of  certain  simple 
flowers,  a  bulb  and  a  root  or  two,  —  the  precious 
roots  of  an  eglantine  and  a  clematis  vine.  And  now 
that  the  chance  of  killing  frosts  was  overpast,  Odalie 
and  Fifine  were  grubbing  much  of  the  time  in  the 
ground  and  Hamish  often  came  and  grubbed  too. 
The  seeds  were  sown  and  grew  apace ;  the  bulbs 
and  roots  throve ;  the  vines  began  to  clamber  over 
the  support  of  a  rude  bower  of  saplings  built  above 
the  door ;  and  soon  when  Odalie  sat  here  beside  her 
spinning-wheel,  in  her  white  linen  dress  with  its 


194          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

broad  collar  of  her  own  hand-wrought  lace,  to  enjoy 
the  cool  air  from  the  mountains,  and  the  color  of  the 
red  sunset  on  the  river,  she  had  a  canopy  of  vines 
above  her  head,  and  between  her  upward  glance  and 
the  sky,  a  blooming  rose,  faintly  pink,  and  a  bird's 
nest  with  four  blue  eggs. 

Captain  Demere,  coming  in  at  the  gate  of  the  stock 
ade  one  afternoon,  exclaimed  in  surprise  and  pleasure 
at  the  prettiness  and  the  completeness  of  this  rude 
comfort.  There  was  but  one  room  in  the  house  with 
a  floor ;  the  seats  were  only  puncheon  benches  with 
rough  staves  for  legs  thrust  through  auger-holes  and 
one  or  two  of  her  befrilled  "  tabourets  " ;  the  table  was 
of  like  manufacture  ;  the  beds  and  pillows  were  mere 
sacks  filled  with  dried  balsam  fringes  from  the  great 
fir-trees,  and  supported  on  the  rudest  frames  ;  but  the 
fresh  aromatic  fragrance  the  fir  dispensed,  the  snow- 
white  linen  the  couches  displayed,  the  flutter  of  the 
quaint  bird-decorated  curtains  at  the  windows,  the 
array  of  the  few  bits  of  treasured  old  china,  the  shelf 
of  precious  old  books,  the  cluster  of  purple  and  white 
violets  arranged  in  a  great  opaline  pearly  mussel- 
shell  from  the  river,  in  default  of  vase,  in  the  center 
of  the  wabbly  table,  the  dainty  freshness  and  neatness 
of  the  whole  —  "This  is  home!"  he  declared.  "  I 
accept  a  new  anthropological  dogma.  Man  is  only 
the  fort-builder  —  woman  is  the  home-maker  !  " 

"Yes,"  said  Odalie  in  content  and  pride,  survey- 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          195 

ing  her  treasures,  as  she  conducted  him  about  the 
place,  for  he  had  not  been  here  since  the  completion 
of  the  improvements ;  "  I  often  say  that  this  is 
home!" 

"  But  never  in  French,"  put  in  Hamish  at  her 
elbow. 

Nevertheless,  this  did  not  contribute  to  alter  Cap 
tain  Demere's  opinion  that  the  frontier  was  no  place 
for  women,  though  that  would  imply,  with  his  later 
conclusions,  no  place  for  home.  He  went  away 
wearing  in  his  buttonhole  a  sprig  of  sweetbrier, 
which  he  declared  again  reminded  him  so  of  home. 
He  had  not  thought  to  find  it  here,  and  memory  fell 
upon  him  unprepared  and  at  a  disadvantage.  The 
moon  was  up  when  he  stepped  into  his  boat,  and 
the  orderly,  bending  to  the  oars,  shot  straight  out 
into  the  river.  Long,  burnished  white  lines  lay 
upon  its  gleaming  surface,  and  looking  back  Demere 
could  see  beyond  the  shadow  and  sheen  of  the 
sloping  bank  the  cleared  space,  where  the  moon 
beams  fell  in  unbroken  splendor  before  the  stock 
ade,  and  through  its  open  gate  the  log-cabin  with 
its  primitive  porch,  where,  young  and  beautiful,  she 
sat  in  her  white  dress  in  the  bright  light  beside  the 
silent  little  flax-wheel.  Home  undoubtedly  !  As 
the  boat  headed  up  the  river  he  looked  moodily  at 
the  ripples,  glancing  in  the  moonbeams,  and  noted 
with  a  keen  new  sensitiveness  the  fragrance  of  the 


196          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

eglantine,  reminiscent  of  summers  dead  and  gone, 
and  life  as  fleeting  and  frail  as  the  transitory  flower. 

For  the  news  that  came  in  these  days  from  over 
the  mountains  was  always  heavy  news,  —  rumors  of 
massacres,  now  of  a  single  individual  in  some  ex 
posed  and  dangerous  situation,  and  again  of  settlers 
surprised  and  overcome  by  numbers  within  the 
defenses  of  their  own  stanch  stockade. 

All  along  the  frontier  the  spirit  seemed  to  extend, 
first  toward  the  north  and  then  southward,  and  it 
was  apparently  only  a  question  of  time  when  the 
quiet  and  peace  that  encircled  Fort  Loudon  should 
be  summarily  broken.  Many  of  the  pioneers,  could 
they  now  have  returned  to  Virginia  or  the  Caro- 
linas  without  danger,  would  have  forever  relinquished 
their  new  homes,  and  have  set  forth  on  their 
long  journey  without  delay.  But  the  Cherokees 
about  them,  personally  known  to  them  and  appar 
ently  without  individual  animosity,  seemed  a  slighter 
menace  than  the  probable  encounter  with  wild  wan 
dering  bands,  glutted  with  blood  yet  thirsting  still  for 
vengeance.  In  one  of  Demere's  reports  about  this 
time,  early  in  the  year  1759,  ne  saYs  :  "We  are 
living  in  great  harmony  here  — no  cbad  talks'  at  all." 

Again  and  again  he  and  Captain  Stuart,  accom 
panied  only  by  an  orderly  to  mark  their  sense  of 
confidence,  went  to  Chote  to  confer  in  a  friendly 
way  with  the  king  and  half-king,  and  seek  to  induce 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London  197 

them  to  take  some  order  with  these  depredators, 
and  restore  the  peace  of  the  border. 

The  great  council-house  at  Chote  was  a  curious 
circular  structure,  formed  of  withes  and  willows  and 
wand-like  timbers,  woven  together  in  a  dome-like 
shape  to  the  height  of  twenty  feet,  with  a  diameter 
of  thirty  feet  at  the  base ;  the  whole  was  covered 
over  with  a  thick  coating  within  and  without  of  the 
deeply  and  richly  tinted  red  clay  of  that  region,  and 
pierced  by  no  window  or  chimney  or  other  outlet 
than  the  tall  and  narrow  doorway.  The  last  time 
the  two  officers  together  sought  the  presence  of  the 
kings  in  the  Qttare  district,  as  the  mountainous 
region  was  called,  —  the  towns  designated  as  the 
Ayr  ate  settlements  signified  the  lower  country, — 
they  were  received  here,  and  Stuart,  from  the 
moment  of  their  entrance,  knew  that  their  mission 
was  hopeless. 

They  had  recently  been  ordered  to  demand 
the  surrender  to  them  of  certain  notable  Cherokees, 
for  having  been  concerned  in  the  distant  border 
murders,  and  who  lived  in  the  towns  of  Citico  and 
Tellico  hard  by,  close  at  hand  to  both  Chote  and 
Fort  Loudon.  They  realized  that  this  measure 
was  at  once  displeasing  and  impracticable  to  the 
kings,  whose  authority  could  not  compass  the  sur 
render  of  their  tribesmen  to  the  justice  of  the  gibbet, 
after  the  expiatory  methods  of  the  English,  and  who 


198          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

foresaw  that  such  compliance  would  but  provoke 
reprisal  on  the  paleface  and  further  outbreaks. 

Sitting  motionless  on  buffalo  rugs,  a  number  of 
which  were  spread  over  the  floor  of  the  room, 
on  which  the  two  officers  were  also  invited  to  be 
seated,  the  Indians  advanced  none  of  the  equivocal 
statements  and  doubtful  promises  and  fallacious 
expectations  of  peace  as  heretofore,  but  kept  their 
eyes  fixed  upon  the  ground,  while  the  officers  once 
more  expressed  their  earnest  remonstrances  and 
made  their  summary  demand,  implicitly  obeying 
their  orders,  although  this  extreme  and  impolitic 
measure  was  secretly  deprecated  by  both. 

The  "  talk "  was  conducted  by  means  of  the 
services  of  an  interpreter,  an  Indian,  who  stood  be 
hind  the  great  chiefs  and  recited,  now  in  Cherokee 
and  now  in  English,  and  always  with  a  wooden, 
expressionless  accent,  as  if  he  were  a  talking  ma 
chine  and  understood  not  a  word  for  which  he 
furnished  the  equivalent,  in  deference  to  the  great 
company  not  permitting  his  mind  to  take  part  in  the 
deeper  significance  of  the  ideas  they  interchanged. 
He  kept  his  eyes  fixed  upon  the  blank  wall  oppo 
site,  and  effaced  his  individuality  as  far  as  possible. 
But  after  the  first  sentences  of  merely  formal 
greeting,  the  wooden  clapper  of  the  interpreter's 
tongue  vibrated  back  and  forth  with  Cherokee 
only,  for  the  Indian  chiefs  said  nothing  to  be  ren- 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          199 

dered  into  English.  Silent  and  stony  they  sat, 
looking  neither  to  the  right  nor  left,  unmoved  by 
urgency,  stolid  to  remonstrance,  and  only  when 
Demere  with  a  flash  of  fire  suggested  that  Governor 
Lyttleton  of  South  Carolina,  or  General  Amherst 
the  new  "  head-man,"  who  was  now  commander-in- 
chief  of  the  army,  would  soon  take  fierce  measures 
to  retaliate  these  enormities,  there  was  a  momentary 
twinkle  in  the  crafty  eyes  of  Oconostota,  and  he 
spoke  briefly.  The  interpreter  woodenly  re 
peated  :  — 

"  I  can  well  believe  you,  for  after  an  English 
treaty  we  have  fraud  and  then  force  and  at  last 
bloodshed." 

Stuart,  the  sombre  red  shadow  of  the  terra-cotta 
walls  hardly  dulling  the  glare  of  his  red  uniform,  sat 
looking  out,  quite  placid  and  self-poised,  through 
the  open  portal  at  the  scattered  huts  of  the  town, 
at  the  occasional  passing  of  an  Indian's  figure, 
at  Chilhowee  Mountain  in  the  middle  distance, 
densely  green  with  the  dark  lush  growths  of  sum 
mer,  and  beyond  at  the  domes  of  the  Great  Smoky 
range,  a  soft  velvet  blue  against  the  hard  turquoise 
blue  of  the  sky.  The  object,  however,  on  which 
his  eyes  fixed  most  intently  was  the  bright  spot  of 
color  of  the  orderly's  red  coat,  like  a  buoy,  one 
might  say,  against  the  glimmering  river,  in  the 
foreground,  as  he  rested  on  his  oars  in  the  glow  of 


2oo          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

the  sunset,  while  the  little  boat  swung  idly  in  the 
shallows. 

Not  again  did  either  of  the  chiefs  speak.  Demere 
flushed  with  anger  as  sentence  after  sentence  rang 
out  in  English,  now  from  Stuart's  lips,  now  from  his 
own,  —  cogent,  persuasive,  flattering,  fruitless ;  re 
peated  by  the  interpreter  in  Cherokee,  and  followed 
by  a  blank  pause.  Finally  Demere  rose,  and  with 
a  curt  phrase  of  formal  farewell,  to  which  neither 
of  the  chiefs  responded,  bowed  angrily,  and  walked 
out,  pausing  near  the  entrance  to  wait  for  Stuart, 
who  with  blandest  ceremony  was  taking  his  leave, 
—  saying  how  much  he  hoped  there  would  be  no 
interruption  to  the  kind  friendship  with  which  the 
great  men  had  personally  favored  them,  and  which 
they  so  highly  valued ;  and  how  earnestly  he  desired 
to  express  their  thanks  for  the  interview,  although  it 
grieved  him  to  perceive  that  the  chiefs  felt  they 
could  say  so  little  on  the  subject  that  had  brought 
him  hither.  He  could  not  have  bowed  with  more 
respectful  formality  if  he  were  quitting  the  presence 
of  General  Amherst  himself,  the  cocked  hat  in  his 
right  hand  sweeping  low  as  he  made  his  obeisance  ; 
but  he  could  detect  in  both  faces  no  change 
of  expression,  except  that  the  eye  of  Oconostota 
twinkled  with  derision  or  anger  or  pleasure  —  who 
can  say  ?  He  left  them  sitting  motionless  there  in 
the  deep  red  dusk  reflected  down  from  the  terra-cotta 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          201 

walls,  and  the  interpreter,  looking  as  wooden  as  his 
voice  sounded,  standing  bolt  upright  behind  them. 

Stuart  did  not  comment  on  the  character  of  the 
audience  vouchsafed  as,  shoulder  to  shoulder,  he  and 
Demere  took  their  way  down  to  the  boat,  where 
the  young  soldier  awaited  them.  He  only  said, 
"  I  have  been  uneasy  about  that  orderly  all  the 
time  for  fear  our  presence  here  did  not  protect  him, 
as  he  was  not  on  the  ever-sacred  soil  of  the  'beloved 
city  of  refuge'  —  Chote — old  town.  I  wished  we 
had  taken  the  precaution  of  ordering  him  ashore. 
Affairs  are  near  the  crisis,  Paul." 

They  seated  themselves,  and  the  young  soldier 
pulled  out  from  the  shore,  Demere,  both  angry  and 
cast  down,  realizing  as  he  had  not  heretofore  the 
imminence  of  the  peril  to  the  settlement. 

Dusk  was  upon  the  river ;  stars  began  to  palpitate 
elusively  in  the  pallid  sky ;  shadows  mustered  thick 
along  the  bank.  Suddenly  a  sound,  sharp,  dis 
cordant,  split  the  air,  and  a  rifle-ball  whizzed  past 
between  the  two  officers  and  struck  the  water  on 
the  further  side  of  the  boat.  The  unarmed  orderly 
seemed  for  a  moment  as  if  he  would  plunge  into 
the  river. 

"  Steady — steady  —  give  way,"  said  Stuart.  Then 
to  Demere,  who  had  his  hand  on  his  pistol,  and  was 
casting  a  keen  glance  along  the  shore  preparatory  to 
taking  aim,  —  "  Why  do  you  return  the  fire,  Paul  ? 


2O2          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

To  make  our  fate  certain  ?  We  should  be  riddled 
in  a  moment.  I  have  counted  nearly  fifty  red 
rascals  in  those  laurel  bushes." 

Why  the  menace  was  not  repeated,  whether  the 
skulking  braves  feared  the  displeasure  of  their  own 
authorities,  or  the  coolness  of  the  little  group  ex 
torted  their  admiration,  so  quick  to  respond  to  an 
exhibition  of  stoical  courage,  no  further  demonstra 
tion  was  offered,  and  the  boat  was  pulled  down  the 
five  miles  from  Chote  to  Fort  Loudon  in  better 
time  perhaps  than  was  ever  made  with  the  same 
weight  on  that  river.  The  landing  was  reached,  to 
the  relief  even  of  the  phlegmatic-seeming  Stuart. 

"  So  ends  so  much,"  he  said,  as  he  stepped  out 
of  the  boat.  "  And  I  go  to  Chote  —  old  town  — 
no  more." 

But  he  was  destined  one  day  to  retrace  his  way, 
and,  sooth  to  say,  with  a  heavier  heart. 

The  season  waxed  to  ripeness.  The  opulent 
beauty  of  the  early  summer-tide  was  on  this 
charmed  land.  Along  the  heavily-wooded  moun 
tain  sides  the  prodigal  profusion  of  the  blooming 
rhododendron  glowed  with  a  splendor  in  these 
savage  solitudes  which  might  discredit  the  treas 
ures  of  all  the  royal  gardens  of  Europe.  Vast 
lengths  of  cabling  grape-vines  hung  now  and  again 
from  the  summit  of  one  gigantic  tree  to  the  ground, 
and  thence  climbed  upward  a  hundred  feet  to  the 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          203 

topmost  boughs  of  another,  affording  ambush  for 
Indians,  and  these  darkling  coverts  began  to  be 
craftily  eyed  by  the  soldiers,  whose  daily  hunt  for 
the  provisions  of  the  post  carried  them  through 
many  dense  jungles.  Everywhere  the  exquisite 
mountain  azalea  was  abloom,  its  delicate,  subtle 
fragrance  pervading  the  air  as  the  appreciation  of 
some  noble  virtue  penetrates  and  possesses  the 
soul,  so  intimate,  so  indissoluble,  so  potent  of 
cognition.  It  seemed  the  essential  element  of  the 
atmosphere  one  breathed.  And  this  atmosphere 
—  how  light — how  pure!  sheer  existence  was  a 
cherished  privilege.  And  always  on  this  fine  ethe 
real  medium  came  the  echo  of  woe ;  blended  with 
the  incense  of  the  blooming  wild  grape  seemed 
the  smell  of  blood ;  the  rare  variety  of  flame-tinted 
azaleas  flaring  on  some  high,  secluded  slope  showed 
a  color  reminiscent  only  of  the  burning  roof-trees 
and  stockades  of  destroyed  homes.  Peace  upon  the 
august  mountains  to  the  east,  veiling  their  peaks 
and  domes  in  stillness  and  with  diaphanous  cloud; 
peace  upon  the  flashing  rivers,  infinitely  clear  and 
deep  in  their  cliff-bound  channels ;  and  peace  upon 
all  the  heavily-leaved  shadowy  forests  to  the  massive 
westward  range,  level  of  summit,  stern  and  military 
of  aspect,  like  some  gigantic  rampart!  But  the 
mind  was  continually  preempted  by  the  knowl 
edge  that  in  the  south  were  murder  and  despair,  in 


204          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

the  east  were  massacre  and  pillage,  that  rapine  was 
loosed  upon  the  land,  and  that  this  external  fixity 
of  calm  was  as  unstable  as  the  crystalline  sphere  of 
a  bubble  to  collapse  at  a  touch.  Every  ear  was 
strained  to  a  whisper;  the  express  from  over  the 
mountain  was  met  afar  off  by  stragglers  from  the 
settlement,  and  came,  delivering  by  word  of  mouth 
such  news  as  he  personally  possessed,  before  his 
package  was  rendered  up  to  the  officers  at  the  fort. 
Every  heart  seemed  subject  to  the  tension  of  suspense 
except  such  organ  as  might  serve  Captain  Stuart 
for  the  cardiacal  functions.  He  appeared  wholly 
engrossed  in  perfecting  the  details  of  battalion 
drill,  and  the  attention  of  the  garrison  was  con 
centrated  on  these  military  maneuvers ;  even  the 
men  of  the  settlement,  especially  the  rattling  single 
men,  were  drawn  into  these  ranks,  the  garrison  not 
being  strong  enough  to  furnish  the  complement 
desired.  In  their  buckskin  hunting-shirts  and 
leggings,  with  their  muscular,  keen  activity,  their 
ready  practice,  and  their  suppleness  in  handling 
their  rifles,  the  pioneers  made  what  he  was 
pleased  to  call  "a  very  pretty  body  of  fencibles." 
His  praise  and  their  evident  advance  in  profi 
ciency  gratified  them,  although  the  tactical  arts  of 
war  in  the  heavy  growths  of  this  wild  and  rocky 
country  were  at  a  discount,  since  the  defeat  of  that 
martinet  and  military  precisian.  General  Braddock. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon  205 

Thus  the  afternoon  drill  at  the  fort  became  of 
increasing  public  interest,  and  afforded  the  social 
opportunity  of  a  rendezvous  for  the  whole  settle 
ment;  and  despite  the  growing  disaffection  of  the 
Cherokees,  now  and  again  groups  of  Indian  specta 
tors  appeared  at  the  gate. 

Stuart's  tact  never  deserted  him ;  one  day  when 
ordering  a  knot  of  pioneers  near  the  sally-port  to 
"fall  in"  —  for  he  himself  drilled  the  fencibles  — 
he  motioned  too,  with  his  imperious  gesture,  to 
half  a  dozen  braves  who  were  standing  hard  by, 
as  if  he  made  no  difference  between  them  and 
the  other  civilian  neighbors.  One  moment  of 
astounded  doubt,  then  they  "  fell  in  "  as  front-rank 
men,  evidently  infinitely  flattered  and  marvelously 
quick  in  adapting  the  manual  exercise  they  had  often 
witnessed.  Now  and  again  there  was  an  expression 
of  keen  interest  on  their  stolid  faces,  and  more  than 
once  when  woe  befell  the  effort  to  ploy  the  battalion 
into  double  column  to  form  square  and  the  move 
ment  became  a  contortion,  they  laughed  out  gut- 
turally  —  that  rare  Indian  mirth  not  altogether 
pleasant  to  hear.  And  as  they  went  home  in  the 
red  sunset  to  Citico,  and  Great  Tellico,  and  Ten 
nessee  Town  and  Chote,  from  along  the  river  banks 
came  their  harsh  cries  —  "Shoulder  firelock!"  or 
"  Fa'lock,"  as  they  rehearsed  it.  "  Feex  Bay'net ! 
Pleasant  A'hms!" 


206          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

It  became  evident  that  they  rehearsed  their  learn 
ing,  suiting  the  action  to  the  word,  once  too  often, — 
for  they  returned  no  more.  Whatever  might  have 
been  the  advantage  of  their  acquiring  the  secret  of 
the  military  maneuvers  from  so  competent  and 
patient  an  instructor  as  the  condescending  Captain 
Stuart,  the  powers  that  were  at  Chote  had  no  mind  to 
expose  their  stalwart  young  braves  to  the  winning 
wiles  of  that  magnetic  commander,  and  permitting 
them  to  acquire  among  the  troops,  perchance,  a 
personal  regard  for  the  officer  and  an  esprit  de  corps 
in  addition  to  a  more  available  military  spirit.  If 
he  had  had  a  scheme  and  the  scheme  had  failed 
there  was  no  intimation  to  that  effect  on  the  imper 
turbable  exterior  he  maintained. 

It  had  always  been  known  that  Captain  Stuart 
was  somewhat  fond  of  the  pleasures  of  the  table, 
and  he  suddenly  developed  a  certain  domesticity  in 
this  regard.  He  desired  to  experiment  on  the  pre 
serving  of  some  "  neat's  tongues,"  —  as  he  politely 
called  those  of  the  buffalo,  —  and  for  the  sake  of 
this  delicacy  utilized  a  floorless  hut,  otherwise  unoc 
cupied,  at  the  further  end  of  the  whole  enclosure, 
as  a  smokehouse.  Often  smoke  was  seen  issuing 
thence,  but  with  this  understanding  it  created  no 
surprise.  Sometimes  the  quartermaster-sergeant 
and  two  or  three  other  non-commissioned  officers 
were  seen  pottering  about  it.  Now  and  again 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          207 

Captain  Demere  stood  at  the  door  and  looked  in. 
One  day  it  chanced  that  Hamish,  who  had  secured 
two  tongues,  desiring  to  offer  them  as  a  small 
tribute,  came  up  close  to  him,  in  his  deft,  noise 
less  deerskin  buskins,  before  Captain  Demere  was 
aware.  As  he  turned  and  saw  the  boy,  he  instantly 
let  the  door  in  his  hand  fly  back  —  not,  however, 
before  the  quick  young  fellow  had  had  a  dissolving 
view  of  the  interior.  A  fire  smoked  in  the  center 
of  the  chimneyless  place,  half  smothered  with 
stones  that  constituted  at  once  a  hearth  and  pro 
tection  from  the  blaze,  but  one  flickering  shred  of 
flame  revealed  not  only  the  tongues  which  Captain 
Stuart  coveted,  but  rows  of  haunches  and  saddles 
of  venison  and  bear  hams,  and  great  sections  of 
buffalo  meat,  as  well  as  pork  and  beef. 

The  boy  understood  in  an  instant,  for  the 
hunters  from  the  fort  provided  day  by  day  for  the 
wants  of  the  garrison  from  the  infinite  reserves  of 
game  in  the  vast  wilderness  without ;  these  were 
preparations  against  a  state  of  siege,  kept  secret 
that  the  garrison  might  not  be  dispirited  by  so 
gloomy  a  prospect,  possibly  groundless,  and  the 
settlement  with  its  women  and  children  affrighted. 
Hamish,  with  a  caution  beyond  his  years,  affected 
to  see  naught,  made  his  little  offering,  and  took 
his  way  and  his  speculations  homeward.  There 
he  was  admonished  to  say  nothing  of  the  dis- 


208          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

covery ;  it  was  very  proper.  Sandy  thought,  for 
the  garrison  to  be  prepared  even  against  remote 
contingencies. 

Hamish  dutifully  acquiesced,  although  he  could 
but  feel  very  wise  to  know  the  secret  workings  of 
Captain  Stuart's  subtle  mind  and  divine  his  hidden 
plans,  when  that  officer  seemed  to  grow  gravely 
interested  in  the  development  and  resources  of  the 
country,  in  which  he  had  no  share  save  the  mini 
mum  of  space  that  the  ramparts  enclosed.  He 
speculated  adroitly  about  mineral  wealth  in  gossip 
ing  with  the  groups  of  settlers  at  the  gates  after 
the  drill.  He  told  some  strange  stories  that  Atta- 
Kulla-Kulla  had  recounted  of  the  vestiges  of  previ 
ous  vanished  inhabitants  of  this  country  —  of  certain 
evidences  of  ancient  mining  ventures  where  still  lay 
curious  outlandish  tools ;  he  felt  certain  of  the  ex 
istence  of  copper  and  lead,  and  he  believed  most 
faithfully  too  in  the  proximity  of  gold;  for  his  own 
part,  he  declared,  he  thought  the  geological  forma 
tion  indicated  its  presence.  These  themes,  trans 
ferred  to  the  great  hall,  served  to  fill  it  with  eager 
discussions  and  clouds  of  tobacco  smoke,  and  to 
detain  the  settlers  as  long  as  the  regulations  would 
admit  of  the  presence  of  visitors.  As  to  iron  and 
other  minerals,  the  springs  indicated  iron  ore  beyond 
a  doubt,  and  he  inquired  earnestly  had  any  one  ever 
tried  to  obtain  salt  by  the  usual  primitive  process  of 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          209 

boiling  and  evaporation  at  the  big  salt-lick  down  the 
river?  Thus  nobody  was  surprised  when  Captain 
Stuart  and  the  quartermaster  and  a  detail  of  soldiers 
and  a  lot  of  big  cauldrons  were  reported  to  be  actively 
engaged  in  the  effort  to  manufacture  salt  down  at 
the  lick.  No  necessary  connection  was  apprehended 
between  the  circumstances  when  four  packhorses 
came  over  the  mountain  laden  with  salt,  for  even 
after  that  event  Captain  Stuart  continued  the  boiling 
and  stirring  that  went  on  down  at  the  lick. 

Hamish  wondered  how  long  he  would  care  to 
keep  up  the  blind,  for  the  need  of  salt  for  the 
preservation  of  more  meat  had  by  this  last  importa 
tion  been  satisfied.  Perhaps  Stuart  himself  felt  it  a 
relief  when  one  day  it  chanced  that  some  buffalo 
bulls  met  at  the  salt-lick,  —  as  if  by  appointment,  — 
and  the  battle  that  ensued  among  them  was  loud 
and  long  and  stormy.  So  numerous  were  the  con 
testants,  and  so  fiercely  did  the  conflict  wage,  that 
the  officer  and  his  force  were  compelled  to  climb  to 
a  scaffold  built  in  one  of  the  gigantic  trees,  used  by 
the  settlers  who  were  wont  to  wait  here  for  the  big 
game  and  fire  down  upon  them  without  the  danger 
of  being  trampled  to  death. 

This  battle  had  other  observers:  a  great  panther 
in  the  same  tree  crouched  on  a  limb  not  far  above 
the  soldiers,  and  sly  and  cowardly  as  the  creature  is, 
gazed  at  them  with  a  snarling  fierce  distention  of 


2io          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

jaws,  plainly  unaware  of  any  weapons  that  could 
obviate  the  distance,  and  counting  on  a  lingering 
remnant  of  the  party  as  evidently  as  on  the  slain 
bison  to  be  left  on  the  ground  when  the  battle 
should  be  over.  Now  and  again  came  a  glimpse  of 
the  stealthy  approach  of  wolves,  which  the  tumult 
of  the  conflict  had  lured  to  the  great  carcass  of  the 
defeated.  Although  the  salt-makers  waited  in  much 
impatience  through  several  hours  for  the  dispersal 
of  the  combatants,  and  were  constrained  to  fire  their 
pistols  almost  in  the  faces  of  the  wolves  and  pan 
thers,  Captain  Stuart's  chief  emotions  seemed  ex 
pressed  in  admiring  the  prowess  of  a  champion  in  the 
fight,  whom  he  identified  as  the  "  big  yanasa  *  that 
was  the  pivot  man  of  the  wheeling  flank/'  and,  on  his 
return,  in  guying  the  quartermaster  on  the  loss  of  the 
great  cauldrons,  for  their  trampled  remains  were  un 
recognizable  ;  but  indeed,  this  worthy's  countenance 
was  lugubrious  enough  to  grace  the  appellation  of 
chief  mourner,  when  he  was  apprised  of  the  sad 
ending  of  the  salt-making  episode,  for  he  loved  a  big 
kettle,  as  only  a  quartermaster  or  a  cook  can,  in  a 
country  in  which  utensils  are  small  and  few  and  not 
to  be  replaced. 

That  Stuart  felt  more  than  he  seemed  to  feel  was 
suspected  by  Demere,  who  was  cognizant  of  how 
the  tension  gave  way  with  a  snap  one  day  in  the 

*  Buffalo. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          211 

autumn  of  that  year  of  wearing  suspense.  Demere 
looked  up  with  a  changed  face  from  the  dispatches 
just  received  —  the  first  express  that  had  come  across 
the  mountains  for  a  month,  having  dodged  and 
eluded  bands  of  wandering  Indian  marauders  all  the 
way. 

"  Governor  Lyttleton  has  taken  the  field,"  he  said. 

"At  last !  "  cried  Stuart,  as  in  the  extremity  of 
impatience. 

For  upon  the  massacre  of  all  the  inmates  of  a 
strong  station,  carried  by  storm,  in  addition  to  other 
isolated  murders  up  and  down  the  frontier,  the  royal 
governor  of  South  Carolina  had  initiated  a  series  of 
aggressive  measures ;  asked  aid  of  North  Carolina, 
urged  Virginia  to  send  reinforcements  and  provisions 
to  Fort  Loudon  (it  being  a  place  which  from  its  re 
mote  situation  was  very  difficult  at  all  times  to  victual, 
but  in  the  event  of  a  Cherokee  war  entirely  cut  off 
from  means  of  supply),  and  by  great  exertions  suc 
ceeded  in  mustering  a  force  of  eight  hundred  militia 
and  three  hundred  regulars  to  advance  into  the 
Indian  country  from  the  south.  The  vigor  and 
proportions  of  this  demonstration  alarmed  the 
Cherokees,  grown  accustomed  to  mere  remonstrance 
and  bootless  threats.  They  had  realized,  with  their 
predominant  military  craft,  the  most  strongly  de 
veloped  of  their  mental  traits,  that  the  occupation 
of  all  the  available  forces  of  the  government  in 


212          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

Canada  and  on  the  northwestern  frontiers  crippled 
the  capacity  to  make  these  threats  good.  Thus  they 
had  reveled  in  a  luxury  of  fancied  impunity  and  a 
turbulent  sense  of  power.  Now  they  were  smitten 
with  consternation  to  perceive  the  cloud  upon  the 
horizon.  Suddenly  the  privileges  of  trade  which  they 
had  forfeited,  —  for  they  had  become  dependent  on 
the  supplies  of  civilization,  such  as  ammunition, 
guns,  tools,  blankets,  etc.,  and  certain  stores  in 
transit  to  them  had  been,  by  Governor  Lyttleton's 
instructions,  intercepted  by  Captain  Coytmore,  the 
commandant  at  Fort  Prince  George ;  —  the  oppor 
tunities  of  a  strong  alliance  that  they  had  discarded ; 
the  advantageous  stipulations  of  the  treaties  they  had 
annulled ;  all  seemed  precious  when  annihilated  by 
their  own  act. 

The  Upper  towns  and  the  Lower  towns  —  the 
Ottare  and  the  Ayr  ate  —  met  in  solemn  conclave  at 
Chote  to  consider  the  situation. 

Fort  Loudon,  hard  by,  maintained  quiet  and  keen 
watch  and  strict  discipline.  The  drums  beat,  the 
bugles  sounded  for  the  measured  routine.  The  flag 
waved  in  the  sunshine,  slipping  up  to  meet  the  dawn, 
fluttering  down  as  the  last  segment  of  the  ver 
milion  disk  slipped  behind  the  dark,  level,  ram 
part-like  summit  of  the  distant  Cumberland  range, 
and  the  sunset-gun  boomed  till  the  echoes  blared 
faintly  even  about  the  council-chamber  at  Chote, 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          213 

where  the  warriors  were  gathered  in  state.  Whether 
the  distant  thunderous  tone  of  that  potent  force 
which  the  Indians  admired,  and  feared,  and  sought 
to  comprehend  beyond  all  other  arms  of  the  service, 
the  artillery,  suggested  anew  the  untried  menace 
of  Lyttleton's  invasion  of  their  country  with  a 
massed  and  adequate  strength ;  whether  they  had 
become  desirous  now  to  regain  those  values  of  trade 
and  alliance  that  they  had  thrown  away  in  haste  ; 
whether  their  repeated  reprisals  had  satiated  their 
greed  of  vengeance  for  their  comrades,  slain  on  the 
return  march  from  aiding  the  defense  of  the  Vir 
ginia  frontier ;  whether  they  were  inspired  only  by 
their  veiled  deceit  and  savage  craft,  in  which  they 
excelled  and  delighted,  and  which  we  now  call  di 
plomacy,  exercised  between  the  enlightened  states 
men  of  conferring  and  Christian  nations,  —  whatever 
motive  urged  their  decision,  no  gun  barrel  was  ^awed 
off,  an  unfailing  preparation  for  battle,  no  corn 
pounded,  no  knife  whetted,  no  face  painted,  no  bow 
strung,  no  mysterious  scalp-dance  celebrated  —  the 
Cherokees  were  not  upon  the  war-path  ! 

A  deputation  of  their  "  beloved  men  "  went  to 
forestall  the  martial  advance  of  the  Carolinians  — 
Oconostota,  the  "great  warrior,"  with  his  many 
wrinkles,  and  his  crafty  eye,  and  his  port  of  mean 
ing  that  heralded  events ;  and  Atta-Kulla-Kulla,  of 
whom  all  had  heard,  whose  courage  was  first  of  the 


214          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

brain  and  then  of  the  hand,  whose  savage  in 
stincts  were  disciplined  by  a  sort  of  right  judgment, 
an  intelligence  all  independent  of  education,  or 
even  of  that  superficial  culture  which  comes  of  the 
observation  of  those  of  a  higher  and  trained  intel 
lect  ;  and  also  Willinawaugh,  fierce,  intractable, 
willing  to  treat  for  peace,  to  be  sure,  but  with  a 
mental  reservation  as  to  how  far  it  might  serve 
his  purposes.  Savanukah  was  of  the  delegation, 
doubtful,  denying,  with  a  dozen  devices  of  duplicity; 
he  could  not  at  times  understand  the  English  he 
spoke  fairly  well,  and  the  French,  in  which  he  could 
chaffer  smartly  and  drive  a  bargain,  nor  even  the 
Cherokee,  for  which  he  kept  a  deaf  ear  to  hinder 
a  settlement  he  deprecated  with  the  hated  English 
—  invaluable  at  a  council  was  Savanukah  !  Of  the 
number,  too,  was  Tennessee  Warrior,  who  fought, 
and  did  nothing  but  fight,  and  was  ready  and  willing 
to  fight  again,  and  yet  again,  and  to-morrow !  He 
was  always  silent  during  the  conferences,  studying 
with  successive  scowls  the  faces  of  the  white  men. 
He  knew  nothing  about  numbers,  and  did  not  yearn 
to  handle  the  match,  and  make  the  big  gun  howl ; 
he  had  but  to  paint  his  face,  and  whet  his  scalp- 
knife,  and  load  his  firelock,  and  blaze  away  with 
as  deadly  an  aim  as  a  pioneer's.  What  need  had 
the  Tennessee  Warrior  for  diplomacy  ?  If  there 
was  to  be  any  fighting  the  Tennessee  Warrior  would 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          215 

rejoice  in  going  along  to  partake.  If  there  was 
to  be  only  diplomacy,  and  diplomacy  were  long 
continued  with  peace  unbroken,  then  the  white  men 
and  the  red  men  might  be  sure  of  one  thing  —  of 
hearing  the  Tennessee  Warrior  snore  !  He  was  an 
excellent  selection  to  go  to  a  council.  Then  there 
was  Bloody  Fellow,  Eskaqua,  who  had  scant  need 
of  vermilion,  so  sure  he  was  to  paint  himself  red 
in  another  way.  And  Tus-ka-sah,  the  Terrapin  of 
Chiletooch,  and  old  Abram,  Ooskuah,  of  Chilhowee, 
and  Otassite,  the  Man-Killer  of  Hiwassee,  and  old 
Tassel,  Rayetaeh  of  Toquoe,  —  about  thirty-five  in 
all,  —  went  in  a  body  to  Charlestown  to  negotiate 
for  peace,  and  some  of  them  signed.  These  chiefs 
who  signed  were  Oconostota,  Atta-Kulla-Kulla, 
Otassite,  Kitagusta,  Oconnocca,  and  Killcannokea. 

The  day  on  which  they  set  forth  Captain  Stuart 
and  Captain  Demere,  themselves  in  council  in  the 
great  hall  at  Fort  Loudon,  heard  the  news  of  the 
departure  of  the  delegation  on  this  errand,  looked 
at  each  other  in  amazement,  and  fell  into  bursts  of 
laughter. 

Had  their  sense  of  triumph  been  such  as  to  find 
joy  in  reprisal  they  might  have  relished  the  fact  that 
the  anxieties,  the  secret  fear,  the  turmoil  of  doubt, 
which  Oconostota  had  occasioned  to  them,  were  re 
turned  to  him  in  plenitude  on  his  arrival  in  Charles- 
town.  Governor  Lyttleton  had  not  yet  set  out,  but 


216          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

the  military  forces  summoned  forth  were  already 
entered  upon  their  long  and  toilsome  march  from 
various  distant  districts  to  the  appointed  rendez 
vous  at  Congaree,  and  thither  the  commander  of  the 
expedition  felt  that  he  must  needs  forthwith  repair 
to  meet  them.  "  I  did  not  invite  you  to  come 
here/'  he  said  to  Oconostota,  and  despite  the  re 
monstrance  of  the  delegation,  and  doubtless  think 
ing  he  could  treat  with  the  savages  to  more  effect 
at  the  head  of  an  armed  force  invading  their  coun 
try,  he  postponed  hearing  their  "  talk "  till  he 
should  have  joined  his  little  army,  but  offered  them 
safe-conduct  in  accompanying  his  march.  "  Not  a 
hair  of  your  head  shall  be  touched/'  he  declared. 
Returning  thus,  however,  almost  in  the  humili 
ated  guise  of  prisoners,  in  fact  under  a  strong  guard, 
accompanying  a  military  force  that  was  invading 
Cherokee  soil,  comported  little  indeed  with  Oconos- 
tota's  pride  and  his  sense  of  the  yet  unbroken  power 
of  his  nation.  The  coercions  of  this  virtual  captivity 
extended  to  the  stipulations  of  the  treaty  presently 
formulated.  While  ratifying  previous  pledges  on 
the  part  of  the  Indians  to  renounce  the  French  in 
terest,  and  providing  for  the  renewal  to  them  of  the 
privileges  of  trade,  this  treaty  required  of  them  the 
surrender  of  the  murderers  concerned  in  the  mas 
sacres  along  the  frontier ;  pending  the  delivery  of 
these  miscreants  to  the  commandant  at  Fort  Prince 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          217 

George,  and  as  a  guarantee  of  the  full  and  faithful 
performance  of  this  compact,  the  terms  dictated  the 
detention  at  the  fort,  as  hostages,  of  twenty-two  of 
the  Cherokee  delegation  now  present.10 

Oconostota  himself  was  numbered  among  the 
hostages  to  be  detained  at  Fort  Prince  George  until 
the  surrender  of  the  Cherokee  murderers,  but  the 
representations  of  Atta-Kulla-Kulla,  who  was  at 
liberty,  compassed  the  king's  release,  urging  his  in 
fluence  with  his  nation  and  the  value  of  his  counsels 
in  the  British  interest  for  the  restoration  of  peace. 
The  little  band  of  Cherokees,  helpless  among  over 
whelming  numbers,  was  hardly  in  a  position  to 
openly  withstand  these  severe  measures  proposed, 
and  consequently  the  treaty  thus  signed  on  the  26th 
day  of  December,  1759,  might  have  been  expected 
to  prove  of  but  slight  cohesive  properties.  The 
hostages  remained  of  necessity  at  Fort  Prince 
George ;  the  few  Indians  of  the  unfortunate  em 
bassy  who  retained  their  freedom  began  to  scatter, 
sullen,  fierce,  disconsolate,  to  their  towns ;  the 
army,  already  discontented,  mutinous,  and  eager  to 
be  gone  because  of  the  devastations  of  the  smallpox 
in  a  neighboring  Indian  village,  and  the  appearance 
of  that  disease  among  a  few  of  the  volunteers,  set 
out  upon  its  homeward  march,  without  striking 
a  blow,  from  an  expedition  that  cost  the  province 
the  sum  of  twenty-five  thousand  pounds  sterling. 


2i 8          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

Oconostota  and  Willinawaugh,  sitting  together  on 
the  ground,  in  the  flickering  sunlight  and  the  sparse 
wintry  shadows  of  the  leafless  woods,  looking  like  two 
large  rabbits  of  some  strange  and  very  savage  variety, 
watched  the  rear-guard  file  over  the  hill  in  the  narrow 
blazed  way  that  seemed  a  very  tolerable  road  in  that 
day.  When  the  last  man  had  vanished,  they  listened 
for  a  long  time  to  the  throb  of  the  drum  —  then  the 
sound  was  lost  in  the  distance ;  a  mere  pulsing  in 
the  air  continued,  discriminated  by  the  keen  discern 
ment  of  the  Indians.  At  last,  when  not  even  a 
faint  ripple  of  sound-waves  could  be  felt  in  the  still 
atmosphere,  Oconostota  keeled  over  suddenly  and 
laid  his  ear  to  the  ground.  No  vague  reverbera 
tion,  no  electrical  thrill,  no  stir  of  atom  of  earth 
striking  against  atom ;  nothing !  The  army  was 
gone!  The  two  savage  old  rabbits  squatted  again 
upright  and  seemed  to  ruminate  on  the  situation. 
Then,  as  if  with  a  single  impulse,  they  looked  at 
each  other  and  broke  into  sudden  harsh  gutturals 
of  triumphant  laughter. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

PEACE  was  welcome  —  so  welcome.     Hence 
the  turning  of  the  soil  by  the  pioneers  com 
menced    betimes    in    the    chill    spring   with 
heartfelt  thankfulness  to  be  anew  between  the  stilts 
of  a  plow.     The  sap  was    rising;    the  winter   had 
gone  like  a  quiet  sleep  ensuing  on  the  heavy  tumults 
of  troubled  dreams. 

One  day  a  wren  came  and  perched  in  a  loop-hole 
of  the  block-house  of  the  northwestern  bastion  and 
sang  very  loud  and  sweet  and  clear,  till  all  the  men 
sitting  about  the  fire  turned  to  look  at  it,  amazed 
at  its  temerity,  and  enjoying  in  a  lazy,  sensuous 
way  the  jubilance  and  thrilling  crystalline  purity  of 
its  tone.  Two  of  the  youngsters,  Lieutenant  Gil- 
more  and  Ensign  Whitson,  ready  to  wager  anything 
on  anything,  disputed  as  to  the  size  of  the  creature, — 
if  it  had  on  no  feathers,  —  one  maintaining  that  it 
was  two  inches  long,  the  other,  an  inch  and  a  half. 
The  bird  brought  a  straw  and  arranged  it  carefully 
in  place  in  the  loop-hole,  and  then  singing,  flew 
away,  and  came  back  with  a  feather.  His  intention 
was  evident. 

219 


22O          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London     * 

"  My  young  friend,"  said  Stuart,  carelessly  eyeing 
him,  "  you  are  a  fine  figure  of  a  settler,  but  that 
loop-hole  is  ours  !  " 

"Let  him  have  it,"  said  Demere.  "We  shall 
never  need  it." 

The  door  opened  suddenly,  and  the  orderly, 
saluting,  announced  the  express  from  over  the 
mountains.  At  once  there  ensued  a  great  stir  of 
the  tobacco  smoke,  and  a  laying  aside  of  pipes  in 
any  coign  of  vantage  to  better  handle  the  mail  from 
home.,  as  soon  as  the  official  dispatches  should  be 
read.  And  then,  "  Here's  something  from  Fort 
Prince  George,"  said  Demere,  from  where  he  sat  at 
the  rude  table  with  the  papers  scattered  before  him. 
"A  goodly  packet,"  he  continued,  as  he  broke  the 
seal,  in  the  expectant,  pleased  silence  of  the  others. 
"Ensign  Milne  is  writing — both  the  official  com 
munication  and  a  long  personal  letter,"  noting  the 
signature. 

At  the  first  glance  along  the  lines  his  face  fell. 

"  Captain  Coytmore  is  dead,"  he  said  in  a  low 
voice. 

Murdered  by  the  Indians  he  had  been,  in  front 
of  the  fort,  in  the  presence  of  the  officers  of  his  own 
command !  As  the  news  was  unfolded,  startled, 
amazed  glances  were  exchanged ;  no  word  was 
spoken ;  the  silence  was  only  broken  by  the  low, 
tense  voice  as  Demere  read,  and  now  and  again  the 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          221 

wren's  clear,  sweet,  reedy  note,  full  of  joyance,  of 
life,  as  the  bird  fluttered  in  and  out  and  builded  his 
nest  in  the  loop-hole. 

Without  warning  the  blow  had  fallen.  One 
morning  it  happened,  the  i6th  of  February,  when 
naught  of  moment  seemed  to  impend.  On  the 
bank  of  the  Keowee  River  opposite  to  Fort 
Prince  George,  two  Indian  women  appeared,  and 
as  they  loitered,  seeming  to  have  something  in 
hand,  the  sentinel  called  the  attention  of  an  officer 
of  the  fort,  —  Doharty  it  was,  —  who  at  once  went 
out  to  speak  to  them,  thinking  they  might  have 
some  news.  He  called  out  to  them,  having  a  trifle 
of  Cherokee  at  command,  but  before  they  could 
answer  they  were  joined  by  Oconostota,  the  king  of 
the  Indian  tribe,  arrayed  in  his  buckskin  shirt 
and  leggings,  and  mounted  upon  a  very  excellent 
chestnut  horse.  He  told  Doharty  that  he  desired 
to  speak  to  the  commandant  of  the  fort.  Doharty, 
thinking  it  a  matter  of  importance,  and  possibly 
having  reference  to  the  surrender  of  some  of  the 
murderers  of  the  settlers  in  exchange  for  the  host 
ages,  went  in  great  haste  and  summoned  Captain 
Coytmore,  who  instantly  came,  accompanied  by 
Lieutenant  Bell  with  Foster,  the  interpreter,  follow 
ing.  The  writer  detailed  that  he  himself  was  within, 
engaged  in  inspection  duty  as  officer  of  the  day,  or 
his  interest  and  curiosity  would  have  carried  him  in 


222          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

their  company.  In  expectation  of  developments 
they  all  went  down  to  the  water's  edge,  and  Coyt- 
more  asked  the  chief  if  he  would  not  ford  the  stream 
and  come  over.  But  Oconostota  stated  that  he  was 
in  haste  touching  matters  of  great  moment  which 
he  wished  to  impart  to  the  royal  governor  of  South 
Carolina.  It  was  imperative  that  he  should  treat 
of  the  subject  in  person,  and  thus  he  would  go 
to  Charlestown  to  see  Governor  Lyttleton  if  Cap 
tain  Coytmore  would  send  a  white  man  to  accom 
pany  him  as  a  safeguard  in  the  white  settlements. 
Captain  Coytmore  seemed  to  consider  for  a  moment 
whom  he  could  send;  and  then,  evidently  desirous 
of  furthering  any  pacific  negotiation,  said  that  he 
could  detail  a  man  for  that  duty.  Oconostota 
replied  that  that  courtesy  was  all  he  would  ask  of 
the  commandant  —  a  white  man  as  a  safeguard. 
He  himself  would  furnish  a  horse  for  the  man  to 
ride.  He  had  come  prepared  for  the  purpose,  and 
he  lifted  a  bridle,  which  he  had  brought  over  one 
arm,  to  show  it.  He  then  remarked  that  he  would 
get  the  horse,  which  he  had  left  a  little  distance 
back,  while  Captain  Coytmore  gave  the  man  his 
instructions.  So  saying,  he  lifted  up  the  bridle  in 
his  hand,  whirling  it  three  times  around  his  head, 
and  wheeling  his  horse,  galloped  off,  while  from  an 
ambush  amongst  the  trees  and  underbrush  a  fire  of 
twenty  or  thirty  muskets  was  poured  upon  the  little 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          223 

group  at  the  river  bank.  Captain  Coytmore  was 
sKot  through  the  left  breast  and  died  that  day.  Bell 
and  Foster  were  each  wounded  in  the  leg.  Do- 
harty  and  the  sentinel  had  much  ado  to  get  them 
into  the  fort  with  Coytmore's  help,  for  the  com 
mandant  was  able  to  run  to  shelter  with  the  rest 
through  the  sally-port,  and  until  Parker,  who  the 
writer  said  had  had  considerable  experience  as  a 
chirurgeon,  examined  Coytmore's  wound,  neither  he 
nor  the  others  knew  that  it  was  mortal.  Milne,  being 
now  the  officer  in  command,  thought  it  fit  to  order 
the  hostages  into  irons,  fearing  some  outbreak  within 
the  fort  as  well  as  an  attack  from  without.  One  and 
twenty  stalwart  savages  were  dangerous  inmates  at 
large,  with  the  freedom  of  the  parade  as  they  had 
had  much  of  the  time.  They  resisted ;  one  of  the 
soldiers  was  killed  in  the  effort  to  shackle  them,  for 
arms  appeared  among  them,  evidently  brought  and 
secreted  by  their  friends  who  had  been  permitted  to 
visit  them,  much  leniency  having  been  accorded 
them,  being  hostages  and  not  themselves  criminals. 
Another  soldier  was  wounded  in  the  head  with  a 
tomahawk.  Upon  the  death  of  their  comrade,  and 
the  announcement  that  the  commandant  was  dying, 
the  garrison  was  seized  with  an  uncontrollable  frenzy, 
fell  upon  the  hostages,  and  within  five  minutes  had 
slaughtered  the  last  man  of  them. 

"  I  know   you  will  feel    for  me,"   Milne  wrote. 


224          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

"  I  dared  scarce  reprimand  the  men,  for  they  were 
full  of  fury.  I  see  here  and  there  signs  of  sullen- 
ness.  They  watch  me  —  their  way  of  showing 
regret.  I  can  scarcely  blame  —  yet  the  Cherokees 
were  hostages  and  I  am  sorry;  I  was  much  alone,  with 
the  temper  of  the  soldiers  to  consider.  Coytmore 
dead,  and  Bell  gone  into  a  delirium  with  the  fever 
—  his  wound  bled  very  little  —  the  ball  is  near  the 
bone.  Doharty  had  been  ill  of  a  pleurisy  and 
seems  to  relapse.  On  the  night  after,  I  sat  for  a 
time  in  the  block-house  where  we  had  laid  the 
commandant,  feeling  very  low  in  my  mind.  There 
is  one  of  the  men  a  bit  of  a  joiner,  and  a  great 
billet  of  the  red  cedar,  used  in  building  the  fort, 
being  left  over,  he  made  a  decent  coffin,  the  wood 
working  easily  and  with  a  fine  grain  and  gloss.  I 
could  hear  as  I  sat  there  the  tapping  of  his  mallet 
and  chisel  as  he  worked  on  the  coffin,  while  Coytmore 
lay  with  the  flag  over  him,  his  sword  and  hat  by  his 
side  —  there  was  no  fire,  because  of  him,  and  only  a 
candle  at  his  head,  or  I  think  the  savages  would  have 
seen  the  light.  But  the  work  being  finished  and 
everything  still,  they  supposed  all  asleep.  I  cannot 
think  why  they  did  not  smell  the  blood  —  for  the 
ground  of  the  room  where  the  hostages  lay  reeked 
of  it.  Twenty-one  !  —  I  could  not  think  how  I 
could  bury  them  inside  the  fort  and  I  dared  not 
send  out  a  detail,  nor  do  I  think  the  men  would 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          225 

obey  —  the  barracks  seemed  steeped  in  the  smell,, 
though  none  there.  Of  a  sudden,  the  night  being 
fine  and  chill  as  I  sat  there  with  Coytmore,  a  sentry 
outside  the  door,  I  heard  a  great  voice  like  a  wind 
rushing.  I  thought  I  had  been  sleeping.  And  again 
I  heard  it — words  in  Cherokee.  Q-se-skinnea  co-tan- 
co-nee  !  I  slipped  outside  the  block-house  where  was 
the  sentinel,  much  startled,  and  bade  him  fetch  the 
interpreter,  alive  or  dead.  He  came  limping  —  not 
greatly  hurt.  The  words  he  said  meant,  "Good 
tidings  for  the  unhappy."  Then  as  we  stood  there 
other  words  sounded  signifying  f  Fight  manfully  and 
you  will  be  assisted  !  *  They  were  spoken  to  the 
hostages  and  close  to  the  rampart  hard  by  their  hut, 
unknowing  their  —  I  cannot  think  how  they  should 
not  smell  the  blood  !  Then  from  a  greater  distance 
came  the  "  Whoo-whoop ! "  and  a  thick  hail  of 
musketry.  The  men  got  under  arms  very  quick 
and  tractable,  and  I  think  wished  to  atone.  The 
fire  of  the  savages  had  no  effect,  the  balls  being 
buried  in  the  earth  of  the  escarp,  or  falling  spent 
within  the  fort.  But  we  were  kept  at  it  all  night, 
the  men  tireless  and  dutiful.  The  savages  now 
and  then  paused  at  first,  expecting  some  token 
from  the  hostages.  Then  they  fought  with  great 
persistence  —  realizing.  With  what  loss  we  do  not 
know,  since  they  carried  off  their  dead.  Sure,  how 
strange  'tis  to  be  fighting  all  night,  firing  through 


226          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

the  loop-holes  of  the  block-house  around  Coytmore, 
with  never  a  word  from  him,  an  order,  or  a  sign. 
I  miss  him  more  since  he  is  out  of  sight.  I  am 
afraid  to  speak  of  burying  the  savages  inside  the 
fort,  along  with  the  commandant  and  Private  Mahone 
—  and  yet  I  must  get  rid  of  them.  Twenty-one  !  — 
in  so  narrow  an  enclosure 

"  Much  gratified  by  a  deputation  of  Indians, 
realizing  at  last,  and  asking  for  bodies.  Would 
not  open  gates  for  fear  of  surprise.  Had  each 
hoisted  up  and  slipped  out  of  embrasure ;  could 
hardly  force  men  to  touch  them.  I  said,  'You 
were  too  quick  once ! '  —  drew  my  pistol.  The 
Indians  seemed  mighty  glad  to  get  them,  yet  women 
went  off  howling.  Soldiers  seemed  relieved  to  find 
in  the  hut  tomahawks  buried  in  ground,  and  a  phial 
of  liquid,  which  they  think  was  poison  for  well.  I 
poured  this  out  on  the  earth,  and  broke  bottle. 
Men's  spirits  improve  —  quite  cheerful.  Hope  you 
have  better  luck  at  Ft.  Loudon.  Pray  some  one  of 
you  write  to  me !  Bell  and  the  others  too  ill  to  send 
remembrances — doubtless  would." 

The  circle  listened  in  appalled  silence,  and  when 
the  reading  was  concluded,  except  here  and  there 
a  murmur  of  commiseration,  or  a  deep  impreca 
tion,  hardly  a  stir  was  in  the  room  until  the  joyous 
notes  of  the  building  wren  arose,  so  clear  that  they 
had  a  suggestion  of  glitter,  if  the  quality  of  light  can 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          227 

ever  be  an  attribute  of  sound.  Then  Captain  Stuart 
asked  for  the  letter  and  silently  read  it  from  end  to 
end,  while  a  fragmentary  conversation  concerning  the 
personality  of  the  slain  hostages,  all  men  of  great 
note  in  their  respective  towns,  began  to  be  prose 
cuted  by  the  others. 

That  evil  days  were  upon  the  land  hardly  ad 
mitted  of  a  doubt,  and  they  fell  to  discussing  the 
improbability  of  measures  of  relief  and  reprisal  being 
undertaken  so  early  after  the  bootless  return  of 
Governor  Lyttleton's  troops  without  striking  a 
blow.  The  Cherokees,  too,  were  surely  cognizant 
of  the  fact  that  it  was  scarcely  possible  in  view  of 
the  great  expense  of  mustering  and  sending  forth 
this  force  that  such  an  expedition  would  again  be 
soon  set  on  foot.  Acting  upon  this  theory,  and 
always  instigated  by  the  subtle  French,  their  dem 
onstration  probably  heralded  a  systematic  and  vigor 
ous  outbreak  all  along  the  frontier,  to  exterminate 
the  settlers  and  free  their  land  forever  from  the 
encroachments  of  the  hated  English.  This  view 
was  confirmed  by  an  attack  which  presently  ensued 
on  Fort  Ninety-six,  and  being  without  effect,  the 
repulsed  Indian  forces  drew  off  and  fell  upon  the 
more  defenseless  settlements,  ravaging  the  frontier 
throughout  the  borders  of  the  two  Carolinas  and 
Virginia  and  practicing  all  the  horrible  atrocities  of 
savage  warfare.  The  settlers  about  Fort  Loudon 


228          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

quaked  in  their  little  log-cabins  and  looked  upon 
their  limited  clearings  in  the  wilderness  and  their 
meager  beginnings  of  a  home,  and  wondered  if  it 
were  worth  coming  so  far  and  risking  so  much  to 
attain  so  little.  As  yet,  save  for  glances  of  a  flash 
ing  ire  and  sullen  silence,  the  Indians  had  made  no 
demonstration,  but  it  was  a  period  of  poignant  doubt, 
like  waiting  for  the  falling  of  a  sword  suspended  by 
a  hair. 

One  day  Odalie  was  startled  by  seeing  Fifine, 
seated  on  the  threshold,  persistently  wreathing  her 
countenance  into  a  grimace,  which,  despite  the  in 
fantile  softness  of  her  face  and  the  harsh  savagery 
of  the  one  she  imitated,  was  so  singularly  recogniza 
ble  that  the  mother  took  her  hands  from  the  bread- 
trough  where  she  was  mixing  the  pounded  corn  meal 
and  went  near  to  hear  what  the  child  was  saying: — 

"  Fonny  !  Fonny  !  "  with  the  terrible  look  of 
malevolent  ridicule  with  which  Willinawaugh  had 
rebuked  Hamish's  poor  pleasantries  on  that  heart 
breaking  journey  hither. 

Odalie's  pulses  seemed  to  cease  to  beat.  The 
child  could  hardly  have  remembered  an  incident  of 
so  long  ago  without  some  recent  reminder. 

"  Where,  Josephine  ?  Where  did  you  see  Wil 
linawaugh  ?  " 

But  Fifine  had  no  mind  to  answer,  apprehending 
the  agitation  in  the  sharp  tones,  and  translating  it 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          229 

as  displeasure.  She  drew  her  countenance  straight 
in  short  order,  and  put  a  meditative  forefinger  in  her 
mouth  as  she  looked  up  doubtfully  at  her  mother. 

Odalie  changed  her  tone ;  she  laughed  out  gayly. 

"  Fonny !  Fonny ! "  and  she  too  imitated  the 
Indian.  Then  exclaimed — "  Oh,  isn't  it  droll, 
Fifine  ? " 

And  Fifine,  deceived,  banged  her  heels  hilariously 
against  the  door-step,  laughing  widely  and  damply, 
and  crying,  "  Fonny  !  Fonny  !  "  in  infantile  derision. 

"  You  didn't  see  c Fonny'  yesterday.  No,  Fifine  ! 
No  !  "  Odalie  had  the  air  of  detracting  from  some 
merit  on  Fifine's  part,  and  as  she  played  her  little 
role  she  trembled  so  with  a  realization  of  terror  that 
she  could  scarcely  stand. 

Yes,  Fifine  protested  with  pouts  and  anger.  She 
bad  seen  him;  she  had  seen  him,  only  yesterday. 

"  Where,  Fifine,  where  ?  "  cried  Odalie  bewil 
dered,  for  the  child  sat  upon  the  threshold  all  the 
day  long,  while  the  mother  spun  and  wove  and 
cooked  within  the  sound  of  the  babble  of  her  voice, 
the  gates  of  the  stockade  being  closed  in  these 
troublous  times,  and  always  one  or  more  of  the 
men  at  work  hard  by  in  the  fields  without. 

The  mystery  was  too  fraught  with  menace  to  be 
disregarded,  but  Odalie  hesitated,  doubting  the  policy 
of  this  direct  question.  Fifine's  interest,  however, 
was  suddenly  renewed  and  her  importance  expanded. 


230          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

"  Him  wasn't  all  in,"  she  explained.  "Him  top- 
feathers  —  him  head  —  an'  him  ugly  mouf  !  "  She 
looked  expectantly  and  half  doubtfully  at  her  mother, 
remembering  her  seeming  anger. 

"  Oh,  how  droll  !  One  might  perish  with  laugh 
ter  ! "  screamed  Odalie,  with  a  piercing  affectation 
of  merriment,  and  once  more  Fifine  banged  her 
heels  hilariously  against  the  door-step,  as  she  sat 
on  the  threshold,  and  cried  in  derision,  "Fonny! 
Fonny ! " 

"  Where,  Fifine  ?  At  the  stockade  ?  Some 
hole  ?  " 

Fifine  became  angry  at  this  suggestion,  for  had 
not  "  Dill  "  built  the  stockade,  and  would  he  build 
a  stockade  so  Indians  might  get  through  and  cut 
off  her  curls  —  she  bounced  them  about  her  head 
—  that  Dill  said  were  "'andsomer  than  any  queen's." 

But  Odalie  knew  she  had  seen  "  Fonny  "  at  the 
stockade,  and  Fifine  contradicted,  and  after  a  spir 
ited  passage  of  "Did!"  "Didn't!"  "Did!" 
"Didn't!"  Fifine  arose  to  go  and  prove  her  prop 
osition. 

There  at  the  little  spring,  so  sylvan  sweet,  so 
full,  yet  with  the  merest  trickle  of  a  branch  that 
hardly  wet  the  mint,  so  shyly  hidden  amongst 
its  rocks,  was  a  fissure.  Odalie  had  often  noted 
it ;  dark  it  was,  for  the  shadows  fell  on  it,  and 
it  might  be  deep ;  limited  —  it  would  but  hold 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          231 

her  piggin,  should  she  thrust  it  there,  or  admit  a 
man's  head,  yet  not  his  shoulders  —  and  this  was 
what  it  had  done  yesterday,  for  protruding  thence 
Fifine  maintained  she  had  seen  Willinawaugh's 
face  with  "him  top-feathers,  him  head,  an'  him 
ugly  mouf!" 

Odalie  laid  her  ear  to  the  ground  to  listen; 
smooth,  quiet,  full,  she  heard  the  flow  of  water, 
doubtless  the  branch  from  the  little  spring  always 
brimming,  yet  seeming  to  send  so  tiny  a  rill  over 
the  slopes  of  the  mint.  There  was  evidently  a  cave 
beneath,  and  they  had  never  dreamed  of  it !  She 
began  to  search  about  for  fissures,  finding  here  and 
there  in  the  deep  herbage  and  the  cleft  rocks  one 
that  might  admit  the  passage  of  a  man's  body.  She 
remembered  the  first  sudden  strange  appearance  of 
the  Cherokee  women  at  her  fireside,  and  afterward, 
and  that  Sandy  and  Hamish  and  Dill  often  declared 
that  watch  the  gate  as  they  might  they  never  saw 
the  squaws  enter  the  stockade  nor  issue  therefrom. 
Doubtless  they  had  come  through  the  cave,  that 
had  a  hidden  exit. 

Her  heart  throbbed,  her  eyes  filled ;  "  I  ought  to 
be  so  thankful  to  discover  it  in  time  —  to  think  how 
safe  we  felt  here  when  the  gates  were  locked !  But, 
oh,  my  home  !  my  sweet,  sweet  home  !  " 

The  way  the  men's  faces  fell  when  they  were 
summoned,  and  stood  and  looked  at  the  slope^  might 


23  2          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

make  one  pity  them.  It  represented  the  hard  labor 
of  nearly  two  years  —  and  it  was  all  to  begin  anew. 

When  Sandy,  with  the  vigorous  Scotch  thrift,  be 
gan  to  show  how  easily  the  stockade  might  be  moved 
to  exclude  the  spring,  Gilfillan  shook  his  head  warn- 
ingly.  A  station  should  never  be  without  water. 
Sooner  or  later  its  days  were  numbered.  As  to  the 
stockade,  it  was  futile.  Twenty  —  nay,  fifty  men 
might  be  surprised  and  massacred  here.  For  the 
ordinary  purposes  of  life  the  place  was  useless. 

Hamish,  after  the  first  sharp  pang,  was  resolved 
into  curiosity;  he  must  needs  slip  through  the  fissure 
and  into  the  cave  below.  When  Odalie  ceased  her 
tears  to  remonstrate,  he  declared  that  he  could  get 
out  of  any  cave  that  Willinawaugh  or  Choo-qualee- 
qualoo  could,  and  then  demanded  to  be  tied  to  her 
apron-string  to  be  drawn  up  again  in  case  he  should 
prove  unable  to  take  care  of  himself.  He  went  down 
with  a  whoop,  somewhat  like  Willinawaugh's  own 
war-cry,  then  called  out  that  the  coast  was  clear, 
and  asked  for  his  rifle  to  be  handed  to  him. 

Following  the  wall  with  his  hand  and  the  sound 
of  the  water  he  took  his  way  through  a  narrow  sub 
terranean  passage,  so  densely  black  that  it  seemed 
he  had  never  before  known  what  darkness  was.  He 
could  hear  naught  but  the  wide,  hollow  echo  of  the 
flow  of  the  stream,  but  never  did  it  touch  his  feet ; 
and  after  he  had  progressed,  as  he  judged,  in- 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          233 

eluding  the  windings  of  his  way,  some  five  or  six 
miles,  he  began  to  recollect  a  little,  meager  stream, 
yet  flowing  with  a  good  force  for  its  compass,  that 
made  a  play  in  the  current  not  a  quarter  of  a  mile, 
not  more  than  one  thousand  feet,  from  the  fort.  So 
well  founded  was  his  judgment  of  locality  that  when 
the  light  first  appeared,  a  pale  glimmer  at  the  end 
of  a  long  tunnel,  growing  broader  and  clearer  on 
approach,  and  he  reached  an  archway  with  a  sudden 
turn,  seeming  from  without  a  mere  "  rock-house " 
—  as  a  grotto  formed  by  the  beetling  ledges  of  a 
cliff  is  called  in  that  region  —  and  with  no  further 
cavernous  suggestion,  the  first  thing  that  caught  his 
eye  was  the  English  flag  flying  above  the  primitive 
block-houses  and  bastions  and  out-works  of  Fort 
Loudon,  while  the  little  stream  gathered  all  its 
strength  and  hied  down  through  the  thick  under 
brush  to  join  the  Tennessee  River. 

The  officers  heard  with  evident  concern  of  the 
disaster  that  had  befallen  MacLeod  Station,  and 
immediately  sent  a  runner  to  bid  the  stationers 
come  to  the  fort,  pending  their  selection  of  a  new 
site  and  the  raising  of  new  houses.  So  Odalie,  with 
such  few  belongings  as  could  be  hastily  collected 
once  more  loaded  on  a  packhorse,  again  entered  the 
gates  of  Fort  Loudon  with  a  heavy  heart. 

But  it  was  a  cheery  group  she  encountered.  The 
soldiers  were  swaggering  about  the  parade  in  fine 


234          The  Story  of  Old   Fort  London 

form,  the  picture  of  military  jollity,  and  the  great 
hall  was  full  of  the  officers  and  settlers.  An  express 
had  come  in  with  news  of  a  different  complexion. 
Long  delayed  the  bearer  had  been ;  tempted  to  turn 
back  here,  waiting  an  opportunity  there,  now  as 
sisted  on  his  backward  journey  by  a  friendly  Indian, 
and  again  seeing  a  dodging  chance  of  making  through 
to  Loudon,  he  had  traveled  his  two  hundred  miles 
so  slowly  that  the  expedition  he  heralded  came  hard 
on  the  announcement  of  its  approach.  While  the 
tidings  raised  the  spirits  of  the  officers  and  the  garri 
son,  it  was  evident  that  the  movement  added  ele 
ments  of  danger  and  developed  the  crisis.  Still 
they  consisted  with  hope,  and  with  that  sentiment 
of  good  cheer  and  jovial  courage  which  succeeded 
the  reading  of  the  brief  dispatch  from  Fort  Prince 
George. 

Advices  just  received  from  Charles  Town.  General 
Amherst  detaches  Colonel  Montgomery  with  adequate 
force  to  chastise  Indians. 

Discussions  of  the  situation  were  rife  everywhere. 
There  was  much  talk  of  the  officer  in  command  of 
the  expedition,  a  man  of  distinguished  ability  and 
tried  courage,  and  the  contradictory  Gilmore  and 
Whitson  found  themselves  in  case  to  argue  with 
great  vivacity,  offering  large  wagers  of  untransfer 
able  commodities,  —  such  as  one's  head,  one's  eyes, 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          235 

one's  life, —  on  the  minor  point,  impossible  to  be 
settled  at  the  moment,  as  to  whether  or  not  he 
spelled  his  name  with  a  final  "y,"  one  maintaining 
this  to  be  a  fact,  the  other  denying  it,  since  he  was  a 
younger  brother  (afterward  succeeding  to  the  title) 
of  the  Earl  of  Eglinton,  who  always  spelled  his  name 
Montgomerie.  It  might  have  afforded  them  further 
subject  for  discussion,  and  enlarged  their  apprecia 
tion  of  the  caricature  of  incongruity,  could  they  have 
known  that  some  two  years  later  three  of  these  sav 
age  Cherokee  chiefs  would  be  presented  to  His 
Majesty  King  George  in  London  by  the  Earl  of 
Eglinton,  where  they  were  said  to  have  conducted 
themselves  with  great  dignity  and  propriety.  Horace 
Walpole  in  one  of  his  letters  chronicles  them  as  the 
lions  of  the  hour,  dining  with  peers,  and  having  a 
vocal  celebrity,  Mrs.  Clive,  to  sing  on  one  of 
these  occasions  in  her  best  style  for  their  pleasure. 
In  fact,  such  was  the  grace  of  their  deportment,  that 
several  of  the  newspapers  seemed  to  deduce  there 
from  the  failure  of  civilization,  since  the  aboriginal 
state  of  man  could  show  forth  these  flowers  of 
decorum,  a  point  of  view  that  offends  to  the  quick 
a  learned  historian,  who  argues  astutely  throughout 
a  precious  half-page  of  a  compendious  work  that  the 
refinements  of  spiritual  culture  are  still  worth  con 
sideration,  seeming  to  imply  that  although  we  can 
not  all  be  Cherokee  chieftains,  and  take  London 


23 6          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

by  storm,  —  in  a  manner  different,  let  us  say  in  pass 
ing,  from  their  previous  reduction  of  smaller  cities, 
—  it  is  quite  advisable  for  us  to  mind  our  curric 
ulum  and  our  catechism,  and  be  as  wise  and  good 
as  we  may,  if  not  distinguished. 

Perhaps  the  Cherokees  acted  upon  the  intuitive 
perception  of  the  value  of  doing  in  Rome  as  the 
Romans  do.  And  that  rule  of  conduct  seems  earlier 
to  have  been  applied  by  Colonel  Montgomery. 
However  he  spelled  his  name,  he  was  sufficiently 
identifiable.  He  came  northward  like  an  avenging 
fury.  Advancing  swiftly  with  a  battalion  of  High 
landers  and  four  companies  of  the  Royal  Scots,11 
some  militia  and  volunteers,  through  that  wild  and 
tangled  country,  he  fell  on  Little  Keowee  Town, 
where  with  a  small  detachment  he  put  every  man  to 
the  sword,  and,  by  making  a  night  march  with  the 
main  body  of  his  force,  almost  simultaneously  de 
stroyed  Estatoe,  taking  the  inhabitants  so  by  surprise 
that  the  beds  were  warm,  the  food  was  cooking,  loaded 
guns  exploded  in  the  flames,  for  the  town  was  promptly 
fired,  and  many  perished  thus,  the  soldiers  having 
become  almost  uncontrollable  on  discovering  the 
body  of  an  Englishman  who  had  only  that  morning 
suffered  death  by  torture  at  the  hands  of  the  savages. 
Sugaw  Town  next  met  this  fate  —  in  fact,  almost 
every  one  of  the  Ayrate  towns  of  the  Cherokee 
nation,  before  Colonel  Montgomery  wiped  his  bloody 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          237 

sword,  and  sheathed  it  at  the  gates  of  Fort  Prince 
George,  having  personally  made  several  narrow 
escapes. 

These  details,  however,  were  to  Fort  Loudon 
like  the  flashes  of  lightning  of  a  storm  still  below 
the  horizon,  and  of  which  one  is  only  made  aware 
by  the  portentous  conditions  of  the  atmosphere. 
The  senior  officers  of  the  post  began  to  look  grave. 
The  idea  occurred  to  them  with  such  force  that 
they  scarcely  dared  to  mention  it  one  to  the  other, 
lest  it  be  developed  by  some  obscure  electrical 
transmission  in  the  brain  of  Oconostota,  that 
Fort  Loudon  would  offer  great  strategic  value  in 
the  possession  of  the  Indians.  The  artillery,  man 
aged  by  French  officers,  who,  doubtless,  would 
appear  at  their  appeal,  might  well  suffice  to  check 
the  English  advance.  The  fort  itself  would  afford 
impregnable  shelter  to  the  braves,  their  French  allies 
and  non-combatants.  Always  they  had  coveted  it, 
always  they  claimed  that  it  had  been  built  for  them, 
here  in  the  heart  of  their  nation.  Stuart  was  not 
surprised  by  the  event.  He  only  wondered  that 
it  had  not  chanced  earlier. 

That  night  the  enmity  of  the  Indians  was  pre 
figured  by  a  great  glare  suddenly  springing  into  the 
sky.  It  rose  above  the  forests,  and  from  the  open 
spaces  about  Fort  Loudon,  whence  the  woods  had 
been  cleared  away,  one  could  see  it  fluctuate  and 


238          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

flush  more  deeply,  and  expand  along  the  horizon 
like  some  flickering  mystery  of  the  aurora  borealis. 
But  this  baleful  glare  admitted  of  no  doubt.  One 
needed  not  to  speculate  on  unexplained  possibilities 
of  electrical  currents,  and  resultant  thrills  of  light. 

3  D 

It  only  epitomized  and  materialized  the  kindling 
of  the  fires  of  hate. 

It  was  Odalie's  little  home ;  much  that  she 
valued  still  remained  there  —  left  to  be  quietly 
fetched  to  the  fort  next  day.  Their  flitting  had 
taken  place  at  dusk,  with  but  a  load  of  wearing 
appare!3  and  it  was  supposed  that  the  rest  was  quite 
safe,  as  the  Cherokees  were  not  presumed  to  be 
apprised  of  their  absence.  The  spinning-wheel 
and  the  loom  ;  her  laborious  treasures  of  home- 
woven  linen  for  bed  and  table;  the  fine  curtains  on 
which  the  birds  flickered  for  the  last  time ;  the  beds 
and  pillows,  adding  pounds  on  pounds  of  dry  balsam 
needles  to  the  fire;  the  flaunting,  disguised  tabourets, 
showing  themselves  now  at  their  true  value,  and 
burning  stolidly  like  the  chunks  of  wood  they 
were  ;  the  unsteady  tables  and  puncheon  benches  ; 
all  the  uncouth,  forlorn  little  makeshifts  of  her 
humble  housekeeping,  that  her  embellishing  touch 
had  rendered  so  pretty,  added  their  fuel  to  the 
flames  which  cast  long-glancing  lines  of  light  up  and 
down  the  silvery  reaches  of  the  river  she  had  loved. 

Captain    Stuart   and   Captain   Demere,  who   had 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          239 

gone  instantly  to  the  tower  in  the  block-house  by 
the  gate,  on  the  report  of  a  strange,  distant  light, 
saw  her  as  they  came  down,  and  both  paused, 
Demere  wincing  a  trifle,  preferring  not  to  meet  her. 
She  was  standing  beside  one  of  the  great  guns  and 
had  been  looking  out  through  the  embrasure.  The 
moon  was  directly  overhead  above  the  parade,  and 
the  shadows  of  the  palisades  fell  outward.  The 
officers  could  not  avoid  her  ;  their  way  led  them 
down  near  at  hand  and  they  needs  must  pass  her. 
She  turned,  and  as  she  stood  with  one  hand  on  the 
big  cannon,  her  white  dress  richly  a-gleam  in  the 
moonlight,  she  looked  at  them  with  a  smile,  some 
thing  of  the  saddest,  in  her  eyes. 

"  If  I  wanted  to  scream,  Mrs.  MacLeod,  I  should 
scream,"  exclaimed  Demere,  impulsively. 

She  laughed  a  little,  realizing  how  he  would  have 
upbraided  the  futility  of  tears  had  she  shed  them  — 
he  was  always  so  ready  with  his  staid,  kind,  unde 
niably  reasonable  rebukes. 

"  No,"  she  said,  "  I  am  trying  to  remember  that 
home  is  not  in  a  house,  but  in  the  heart." 

"  I  think  you  are  trying  to  show  us  the  mettle  of 
a  soldier,"  said  Demere,  admiringly. 

"  Mrs.  MacLeod  would  like  the  king's  commis 
sion  !  "  cried  Stuart,  breaking  the  tension  with  his 
bluff  raillery,  striking  the  cannon  a  smart  tap  with 
the  butt  of  the  pistol  he  carried  in  his  hand,  while 


240          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

the  metal  gave  out  a  deep,  hollow  resonance.  "  Her 
unbridled  ambition  was  always  to  be  the  command 
ing  officer ! " 

Both  Stuart  and  Demere  thought  more  seriously 
of  the  demonstration  as  affecting  the  public  weal 
than  did  the  pioneers  of  the  settlement.  Still 
hoping  for  the  best,  it  seemed  to  them  not  un 
natural  that  an  abandoned  station  should  be  fired 
as  merely  wanton  mischief,  and  not  necessarily  with 
the  knowledge  or  connivance  of  the  head-men  of 
the  Cherokees. 

The  next  day,  the  hunters  of  the  fort  went  out 
betimes  as  usual,  and  Hamish  found  it  agreeable  to 
make  one  of  the  party.  Corporal  O'Flynn  was 
among  the  number,  and  several  horses  were  taken 
to  bring  in  the  game ;  a  bright,  clear  day  it  was,  of 
that  sweet  season  when  the  spring  blooms  gradually 
into  the  richness  of  summer.  The  wind  was  fresh  ; 
the  river  sang ;  the  clouds  of  a  glittering  whiteness, 
a  flocculent  lightness,  floated  high  in  the  blue  sky. 
Suddenly  the  sentry  at  the  gate  called  out  sharply 
for  the  corporal  of  the  guard.  The  men,  lounging 
about  the  parade,  turned  to  look  and  listen. 

The  hoof-beats  of  a  horse  coming  at  frantic  speed 
smote  first  upon  the  ear;  then  across  the  open 
space  to  which  the  glacis  sloped,  with  snorting 
head  and  flying  mane  and  tail,  the  frightened  crea 
ture  galloped,  plunging  through  the  gate  and  half 


Plunging  through  the  gate  and  half  across  the  parade  ground." 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          241 

across  the  parade  ground;  a  soldier  was  on  his 
back,  leaning  forward  upon  the  animal's  neck,  his 
arms  clasped  about  it,  the  stirrups  and  his  posi 
tion  alone  retaining  him  in  the  saddle ;  for  he  was 
dead  —  quite  dead.  Too  dead  to  answer  any  of  the 
dozen  questions  hurled  at  him  as  the  soldiers  caught 
the  bridle ;  when  the  horse  whirled  he  reeled  out  of 
the  saddle,  so  hopelessly  dead  that  they  asked  him 
no  more.  The  good  sorrel  would  have  told  much,  if 
he  might,  as  he  stood,  snorting  and  tossing  his  head, 
and  trembling  in  every  fiber,  his  eyes  starting  out 
of  their  sockets,  yet,  conscious  he  was  among  his 
friends,  looking  from  one  to  another  of  the  sol 
diers  as  they  handled  him,  with  an  earnest  appeal 
for  sympathy  and  consolation  which  implied  some 
terrible  ordeal.  Before  an  order  could  be  given  the 
crack  of  rifles  came  from  the  woods,  and  a  few  of 
the  hunters  were  seen  bursting  from  the  forest,  one 
by  one,  and  coming  at  a  double-quick  up  the  slope 
of  the  glacis. 

Hamish  and  O'Flynn  were  the  last.  They  had 
been  together  a  little  distant  from  -the  others.  Now 
and  again  they  had  heard  the  report  of  firearms, 
multiplied  into  something  like  a  volley. 

"  Listen  at  them  spalpeens  wastin'  powdher,"  the 
corporal  exclaimed  once,  wroth  at  this  unsoldierly 
practice.  "  Must  they  have  twenty  thrys  to  hit  a 
big  black  buffalo  ?  Just  lemme  git  'em  into  the 


242          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

gyard  house  wunst  agin  —  time  they  git  out  they'll 
be  fit  to  worship  the  outside  o'  the  dure ;  it'll  look 
so  strange  an*  good  to  'm." 

It  was  a  wolf-trap  which  he  was  exploiting  at  the 
moment,  made  of  logs  cumbrously  adjusted  and 
baited  with  buffalo  meat,  and  within  it  now  were 
two  large,  handsome  specimens  whose  skins  were 
of  value,  and  who  had  evidently  resolved  to  part 
with  those  ornamental  integuments  as  reluctantly  as 
might  be ;  they  were  growling  and  plunging  at  the 
timbers  with  a  most  ferocious  show  of  fangs  and  the 
foam  flying  from  their  snarling  jaws. 

The  sun  sifted  down  through  the  greit  trees  and 
the  soft  green  shadows  on  the  man  and  boy,  both 
clad  in  the  hunter's  buckskin  shirt  and  leggings. 
Corporal  O'Flynn  had  knelt  down  outside  the  pen 
the  better  to  see  in  the  shadow  the  two  plunging 
wild  beasts. 

"  I'm  afeared  to  shoot  so  close  lest  I  might  singe 
yer  hair,  but  I  can't  stand  on  ceremony,  me  dears," 
he  said,  addressing  the  wolves,  as  he  drew  his  pis 
tol.  "  Bedad,  I  must  go  and  stop  that  wastin'  o' 
powdher ! " 

The  next  moment  something  suddenly  sang  aloud 
in  the  wilderness  —  a  wild,  strange,  sibilant  strain. 
It  seemed  materialized  as  it  whizzed  past  Hamish's 
ear,  and  so  long  had  it  been  since  he  had  heard  the 
flight  of  the  almost  discarded  arrow  that  he  did  not 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          243 

recognize  the  sound  till  he  heard  a  sharp  exclama 
tion  of  pain  and  saw  the  shaft  sticking  in  O'Flynn's 
right  arm,  pinning  it  to  the  logs  of  the  wolf-trap. 
The  claws  of  the  wild  beasts,  reaching  through,  tore 
now  the  buckskin  and  now  the  flesh  from  his  chest, 
as  he  pluckily  struggled  to  free  himself;  the  pistol 
went  off  in  his  grasp  and  one  of  the  wolves  fell  in  con 
vulsive  agonies;  the  other,  dismayed,  shrank  back. 
Hamish  caught  up  O'Flynn's  loaded  gun,  looking 
about  warily  for  Indians,  and  prudently  reserving 
his  fire.  He  saw  naught,  and  the  next  moment  he 
realized  that  O'Flynn  was  fainting  from  the  pain. 
He  knew  that  the  straggler  who  had  shot  the  arrow 
had  sped  swiftly  away  to  summon  other  Cherokees, 
or  to  secure  a  gun  or  more  arrows.  He  risked  his 
life  in  waiting  only  a  moment,  but  with  the  fellow- 
feeling  which  was  so  strong  among  the  pioneers  of 
the  Tennessee  Valley  that  it  would  induce  two  men 
at  parting,  having  but  one  knife  between  them,  to 
break  and  share  the  blade,  to  divide  the  powder  that 
meant  life  in  that  wild  country  equally  to  the  last 
grain,  Hamish  did  not  for  one  instant  contemplate 
any  other  course.  He  rushed  to  O'Flynn  and 
sought  to  release  him,  but  the  flint  of  the  arrow 
that  had  gone  through  the  heavy  muscular  tissues 
of  the  arm  still  stuck  fast  in  the  strong  fiber  of  the 
logs  of  the  trap,  and  the  blood  was  streaming,  and 
once  more  the  wolf  was  angrily  plunging  against  the 


244          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

side  of  the  pen.  Suddenly  the  boy  remembered  the 
juvenile  account  of  the  scalping  of"  Dill."  Calling 
piteously  to  O'Flynn  not  to  mind,  if  he  could  help 
it,  Hamish  placed  one  firm  foot  against  the  straight 
back  of  the  soldier,  and  bracing  himself  with  his  left 
arm  around  a  stanch  young  tree,  he  pulled  at  the 
arrow  with  all  his  might.  There  was  a  ripping 
sound  of  flesh,  a  human  scream,  a  creak  of  riving 
wood,  and  Corporal  O'Flynn  lay  face  downward  on 
the  ground,  freed,  but  with  the  shaft  still  in  his 
arm,  the  blood  spurting  from  it,  and  the  wolf 
plunging  and  snarling  unheeded  at  the  very  hair 
of  his  head. 


CHAPTER   IX 

WITH  a  great  effort  Hamish  dragged 
O'Flynn,  who  was  a  heavy,  muscular 
fellow,  out  of  the  reach  of  the  wolf.  For 
tunately  there  chanced  to  be  a  spring  branch  near 
at  hand,  and  the  ice-cold  water  hurriedly  dashed 
into  the  corporal's  face,  together  with  an  earnest 
reminder  of  the  hideous  danger  of  death  and  torture 
by  the  Indians,  and  a  sense  of  the  possibility  of 
escape,  served  to  sufficiently  restore  him  to  enable 
him  to  get  upon  his  feet,  unsteadily  enough, 
however,  and  with  Hamish's  help  make  his  way 
toward  the  fort  at  a  pretty  fair  speed.  He  fainted 
after  they  crossed  the  ditch,  and  the  great  gates 
closed.  These  two  were  the  last  of  the  hunters 
who  found  rescue ;  the  others  who  had  straggled 
in  previously,  reported  having  been  fired  upon  by 
Indians,  and  that  several  dead  soldiers  were  left 
upon  the  ground. 

The  parade  was  a  scene  of  wild  turmoil,  far  dif 
ferent  from  its  usual  orderly  military  aspect.  The 
settlers  and  their  families,  alarmed  at  last,  had  fled  for 
refuge  to  the  fort,  bringing  only  a  small  portion  of 


246          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

their  scanty  possessions.  Women  were  weeping  in 
agitation  and  terror  of  the  dangers  passed,  and  in 
despair  because  of  the  loss  of  their  little  homes, 
which  the  Indians  were  even  now  pillaging  ;  children 
were  clinging  about  their  mothers  and  peevishly 
plaining,  their  nerves  unstrung  by  the  rush  and 
commotion,  and  the  unaccustomed  aspect  of  the 
place ;  bundles  of  clothing  and  bedding  lay  about 
on  the  ground ;  the  pioneers  moved  hither  and 
thither,  now  seeking  to  adjust  discomforts  and 
clear  the  domestic  atmosphere,  now  aiding  in  the 
preparations  for  an  expected  attack. 

Odalie,  who  had  braced  up  her  heart,  found 
little  to  encourage  her  as  she  went  from  one  to 
another  of  the  matrons  and  sought  to  comfort 
them  with  the  reflection  that  it  might  have  been 
worse.  "  For  my  own  part,"  she  declared,  "  I 
think  of  what  might  have  been.  If  my  household 
gear  were  not  sacrificed  we  should  have  been  at 
home  last  night  when  the  Indians  came  and  found 
us  gone  and  sacked  and  fired  the  house.  And  such 
a  little  thing  to  save  us  —  Fifine's  talk  of  seeing 
Willinawaugh." 

"  Him  top-feathers,  him  head,  an'  him  ugly 
mouf,"  reiterated  Fifine,  who  had  become  impressed 
with  the  belief  that  she  had  done  something  very 
clever  indeed,  and  was  enchanted  to  hear  it  cele 
brated. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          247 

Odalie's  exertions  were  more  appreciated  at  the 
hospital,  where  she  assisted  in  dressing  the  wounds 
and  caring  for  the  comfort  of  the  soldiers  who  had 
been  shot.  Afterward,  still  determined  to  make 
the  best  of  things  and  to  help  ail  she  could,  she 
discovered  a  mission  to  tax  her  powers  in  offering 
to  assist  in  what  manner  she  might  the  quarter 
master-sergeant.  That  functionary  looked  as  if  the 
conundrum  of  the  created  world  had  suddenly  been 
propounded  to  him.  He  was  a  short,  square,  red- 
faced  man,  with  light,  staring,  gray  eyes,  and  they 
seemed  about  to  pop  out  of  his  head  whenever  the 
finding  of  quarters  for  another  family  was  required 
of  him. 

"  Why  couldn't  they  have  brought  some  con 
veniences,  such  as  knives  and  forks  and  cups  and 
platters,  instead  of  fool  trifles  ? "  he  demanded 
fiercely,  aside,  as  he  turned  away  from  one  group 
who  were  as  destitute  of  all  appliances  as  if  they 
had  expected  to  peck  off  the  ground,  or  drink  out 
of  the  bubbles  of  the  spring  branch.  "  I  have  got 
none  to  spare  except  those  of  the  poor  fellows  who 
were  killed  and  Corporal  O'Flynn's,  for  he  will 
be  equal  to  nothing  but  spoon-meat  for  one  while." 

"  Oh,  the  poor  settlers,  —  I  pity  them,  —  and 
poor  Mr.  Green,  —  I  feel  very  guilty,  for  I  came 
here  just  such  a  charge  on  the  resources  of  the  fort, 
myself." 


248          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

He  paused  pudgily,  as  if  he  were  mentally  in  full 
run  and  had  brought  up  with  a  short  stop. 

"Oh,  you — "  he  exclaimed,  in  the  tone  of 
making  an  exception,  "  you  are  you." 

He  felt  equal  to  any  arrangements  for  merely 
military  mortals,  but  the  "squaw  question,"  as  he 
mentally  called  it,  overwhelmed  him.  With  a  lot 
of  anxious,  troubled,  houseless  women  and  queru 
lous,  distraught,  frightened  children,  and  difficult 
half-grown  boys,  —  and  the  commandant's  general 
orders  to  quarter  them  all  to  their  satisfaction  and 
to  furnish  whatever  was  necessary,  —  the  strain 
might  have  proved  too  great  for  the  old  bustling 
sergeant,  and  like  undue  pressure  on  the  boiler  of 
one  of  our  modern  locomotives,  which  he  much 
resembled,  as  he  went  back  and  forth  puffingly, 
might  have  exploded  his  valuable  faculties,  but  for 
Odalie's  well-meant  hints. 

"  I  should  give  Mrs.  Halsing  the  larger  room  if  I 
were  you,"  she  suggested.  "  Mrs.  Beedie  is  a  friend 
of  mine  and  I  will  answer  for  it  that  she  won't 
mind."  Or  —  "If  I  might  suggest,  I  wouldn't 
put  Mrs.  Dean  and  the  twin  babies  next  to  Mrs. 
Rush.  Nervous  headaches  and  other  people's 
twin  babies  won't  keep  step  —  not  one  bit.  Put 
them  next  to  me.  I  am  conveniently  deaf  at  times." 

And  Mrs.  Halsing  said,  "  That  French  thing  flirts 
with  every  man  in  the  fort,  from  the  commandant 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          249 

down  to  Mrs.  Dean's  one-year-old  boy  twin!"  For 
Odalie  was  presently  conveying  this  juvenile  person 
age  about  in  her  arms,  and  he  left  off  a  whimper, 
characteristic  of  no  particular  age  or  sex,  to  exhibit  a 
truly  masculine  interest  in  the  big  soldiers  with  their 
bright  uniforms  and  clanking  accouterments,  and 
although  constrained  by  the  force  of  the  concussion 
to  blink  and  close  his  eyes  whenever  the  great  guns 
were  fired,  he  fairly  wheezed  and  squealed  with 
manly  ecstasy  in  the  sound  —  for  a  cannonade  had 
begun,  seeking  to  deter  the  plunder  of  the  deserted 
houses  in  the  settlement. 

The  din  suddenly  ceased ;  the  active  military 
figures  paused  in  the  swift  preparations  that  were  in 
progress  to  meet  the  expected  attack;  the  confusion 
and  stir  of  the  groups  of  settlers'  families  in  the 
parade  were  petrified  in  a  sort  of  aghast  disarray  ; 
amongst  them  appeared  half  a  dozen  stalwart  fellows 
bearing  a  stretcher,  on  which  lay  the  body  of  the 
dead  soldier  whom  the  horse  had  brought  into  the 
fort,  his  young  boyish  face  all  smooth  again  and  se 
renely  upturned  to  the  serene  sky.  He  was  dressed 
in  his  uniform,  with  his  belt  and  gloves  freshly  pipe 
clayed  and  glittering  white.  His  melancholy  prog 
ress  from  the  crowded  barracks  to  a  vacant  building 
where  were  kept  the  spare  arms,  —  called  the  armory, 
—  there  to  wait  the  few  remaining  hours  of  his  sojourn 
in  these  familiar  scenes,  served  to  deepen  the  gloom 


250          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

with  the  thought  of  the  others  of  the  little  band, 
lying  out  in  the  woods,  who  would  not  receive  even 
such  simple  honors  of  sepulture  as  the  fort  could 
bestow. 

But  after  the  next  day,  when  the  poor  young 
soldier  was  buried  (the  children  wept  dreadfully  at 
the  sound  of  the  muffled  drum,  the  troops  being 
touched  by  their  sympathetic  tears,  and  Captain 
Demere  read  the  burial  service  and  alluded  feel 
ingly  to  the  other  dead  of  the  garrison,  to  whom 
they  could  only  do  reverence  in  the  heart  and  keep 
their  memory  green)  —  after  all  this  the  place  took 
on  an  air  of  brisk  cheerfulness  and  the  parade 
ground  presented  somewhat  the  appearance  of  the 
esplanade  of  a  watering-place,  minus  the  wealth 
and  show  and  fashion. 

In  the  evenings  after  the  dress-parade  and  the 
boom  of  the  sunset-gun,  the  elder  women  sat  about 
in  the  doors  and  porches,  and  knitted  and  gossiped, 
and  the  men  walked  up  and  down  and  discussed 
the  stale  war  news  from  Europe  —  for  the  triumphs 
of  British  arms  were  then  rife  in  all  the  world  —  or 
sat  upon  the  grass  and  played  dominoes  or  cards ; 
the  soldiers  near  the  barracks  threw  horseshoes  for 
quoits  ;  the  children  rollicked  about,  shrill  but  joy 
ous  ;  Odalie  and  Belinda  Rush  in  their  cool  fresh 
linen  dresses,  arm  in  arm,  the  admiration  of  all 
beholders,  strolled  up  and  down  with  measured 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          251 

step  and  lissome  grace;  and  the  flag  would  slip 
down,  and  the  twilight  come  on,  and  a  star 
tremble  in  the  blue  summer  sky;  and  the  sweet 
fern  that  overhung  the  deep  clear  spring,  always 
in  the  shadow  of  the  oaks  near  one  of  the  block 
houses,  would  give  out  a  fresh,  pungent  fragrance. 
Presently  the  moon  would  shed  her  bland  bene 
diction  over  all  the  scene,  and  the  palisades  would 
draw  sharp-pointed  shadows  on  the  dark  interior 
slope,  and  beside  each  cannon  the  similitude  of 
another  great  gun  would  be  mounted;  a  pearly 
glister  would  intimate  where  the  river  ran  between 
the  dense  glossy  foliage  of  the  primeval  woods,  and 
only  the  voice  of  the  chanting  cicada,  or  the  long 
dull  drone  of  the  frogs,  or  the  hooting  of  an  owl, 
would  come  from  the  deserted  village,  lying  there 
so  still  and  silent,  guarded  by  the  guns  of  the  fort. 
And  after  a  little  Odalie  would  be  strolling  on  her 
husband's  arm  in  the  moonlight,  and  would  silently 
gaze  about  with  long,  doubting,  diplomatic  eyelashes 
and  inquiring  eyes  when  asked  where  was  Belinda 
Rush,  —  which  conduct  induced  Mrs.  Halsing's  com 
ment  as  to  Mrs.  MacLeod's  proclivity  toward  match 
making.  For  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  northwestern 
bastion  one  might  see,  if  one  were  very  keen,  sitting 
in  the  moonlight  on  the  tread  of  the  banquette, 
Belinda  Rush  and  Ensign  Whitson  —  talking  and 
talking  —  of  what  ?  —  so  much  !  —  in  fact  so  much 


252          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

that  at  other  times  Ensign  Whitson  had  little  to 
say,  and  Lieutenant  Gilmore  pined  for  lack  of  con 
tradiction,  and  his  powers  of  argument  fell  away. 

Captain  Demere  and  Captain  Stuart,  on  their  way 
to  a  post  of  observation  in  the  block-house  tower, 
came  near  running  over  these  young  people  seated 
thus  one  moonlight  night  —  to  Captain  Demere's 
manifest  confusion  and  Captain  Stuart's  bluff  de 
light,  although  both  passed  with  serious  mien,  doff 
ing  their  hats  with  some  casual  words  of  salutation. 
Despite  his  relish  of  the  episode,  Stuart  glanced 
down  at  them  afterward  from  the  block-house 
tower  and  said,  in  a  tone  of  commiseration,  "  Poor 
little  love-story ! " 

"  Why  preempt  ill-fortune  for  them,  John  ? " 
broke  out  Demere,  irritably. 

"  Bless  you,  my  boy,  I'm  no  prophet !  "  exclaimed 
Stuart  easily. 

The  expected  attack  by  the  Indians  took  place 
one  night  late,  in  the  dead  hour,  after  the  sinking 
of  the  moon,  and  with  all  the  cunning  of  a  designed 
surprise.  The  shadowy  figures,  that  one  might 
imagine  would  be  indistinguishable  from  the  dark 
ness,  had  crept  forward,  encompassing  the  fort, 
approaching  nearly  to  the  glacis,  when  the  crack 
of  a  sentry's  firelock  rang  out,  splitting  the  dead 
silence,  and  every  cannon  of  the  twelve  roared  in 
hideous  unison,  for  the  gunners  throughout  the 


Belinda  and  the  Ensign  on  the  moonlit  rampart.; 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          253 

night  lay  ready  beside  the  pieces.  A  fusillade  ill- 
directed  upon  the  works,  for  the  besiegers  encoun 
tered  the  recoil  of  the  surprise  they  had  planned, 
met  a  furious  response  from  the  loop-holes  where 
the  firelocks  of  the  garrison  were  reenforced  by  the 
rifles  of  the  backwoodsmen.  Every  man  had  been 
assigned  his  post,  and  it  seemed  that  the  wild 
alarum  of  the  drum  had  hardly  begun  to  vibrate  on 
the  thrilling  air  when  each,  standing  aside  from  the 
loop-hole  according  to  orders,  leveled  his  weapon 
without  sighting  and  fired.  Wild  screams  from 
without,  now  and  again,  attested  the  execution  of 
these  blind  volleys  into  the  black  night,  and  the 
anguish  that  overcame  the  stoical  fortitude  of  the 
warlike  Cherokee.  The  crashing  of  the  trees,  as 
the  cannon  on  all  sides  sent  the  heavy  balls  thun 
dering  beyond  the  open  space  into  the  forest,  seemed 
to  indicate  that  the  retreat  of  the  assailants  was  cut 
off,  or  that  it  must  needs  be  made  under  the  open 
fire  of  the  artillery. 

How  the  movement  fared  the  defenders  could  ill 
judge,  because  of  the  tumult  of  their  own  rapidly 
delivered  volleys  —  all  firing  to  the  word,  the  "  fen- 
cibles  "  adopting  the  tactics  of  the  garrison  in  which 
they  had  been  so  well  drilled  —  and  the  regular 
reverberations  of  the  rapidly  served  cannon.  They 
only  knew  when  the  ineffectual  fire  of  the  assailants 
slackened,  then  ceased ;  the  crash  of  riving  timber, 


254          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

and  now  and  again  a  hideous  yell  from  the  forest, 
told  of  the  grim  deed  wrought  beyond  the  range  of 
the  firelock  by  the  far-reaching  great  guns. 

It  was  soon  over,  and  although  the  garrison  stood 
ready  at  their  posts  for  an  hour  or  more  afterward, 
till  the  night  was  wearing  into  dawn,  no  further 
demonstration  was  made. 

"  Vastly  fine !  They  will  not  return  to  the 
attack,  —  the  fun's  over,"  Captain  Stuart  cried 
hilariously  ;  —  his  face  and  hands  were  as  black 
with  powder  "  as  if  he  had  been  rubbing  noses 
with  the  cannon,"  Corporal  O'Flynn  said,  having 
crawled  out  of  the  hospital  on  his  hands  and  knees 
to  participate  in  the  fight  in  some  wise,  if  only  as 
spectator. 

"  They  have  had  a  lesson,"  said  Demere,  with 
grim  triumph,  "  how  severe,  we  can't  judge  till  we 
see  the  ground." 

This  satisfaction,  however,  was  to  be  denied  them, 
for  the  corporal  of  the  guard  presently  brought  the 
report  of  a  sentinel  whose  sharp  eyes  had  descried, 
in  the  first  faint  gray  siftings  of  the  dawn  through 
the  black  night,  parties  of  Indians,  chiefly  women, 
carrying  off  the  dead  and  disabled,  and  now  and 
then  a  wild,  shuddering  groan  or  a  half-smothered 
cry  of  the  wounded  attested  their  errand  of  mercy. 

"  They  ought  to  show  a  white  flag,"  said  Demere, 
exactingly,  like  the  martinet  he  was. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          255 

"  And  they  ought  to  wear  top-boots  on  their  feet, 
and  Steinkirks  around  their  gullets,  and  say  their 
prayers,  but  they  don't,"  retorted  Stuart  in  high 
good  humor,  for  his  rigorous  discipline  and  persis 
tent  formality  were  exerted  only  on  his  own  forces ; 
he  cared  not  to  require  such  punctiliousness  of  the 
enemy  since  it  did  not  serve  his  interest.  "Let 
them  take  the  carrion  away.  We  don't  want  to 
play  scavenger  for  them  —  from  an  ambuscade  they 
could  make  it  mighty  hot  for  us  !  And  we  should 
be  compelled  to  do  it  for  sanitary  reasons  —  too 
close  to  the  fort  to  let  the  bodies  lie  there  and  rot." 

And  with  this  prosaic  reminder  Captain  Demere 
was  content  to  dispense  with  the  polite  formality 
of  a  flag  of  truce.  They  never  knew  what  the  loss 
might  be  on  the  Indian  side,  nor  did  the  braves 
again  venture  within  gunshot.  Now  and  then  the 
cannon  sought  to  search  the  Woods  and  locate  the 
line,  but  no  sound  followed  the  deep-voiced  roar, 
save  the  heavy  reverberations  of  the  echo  from  up 
and  down  the  river  and  the  sullen  response  of  the 
craggy  hills.  The  cannonade  had  served  to  acquaint 
the  Cherokees  with  an  accurate  estimate  of  the  range 
of  the  guns.  The  fact  that  a  strong  cordon  was 
maintained  just  beyond  this,  was  discovered  when 
the  post  hunters  were  again  sent  out,  on  the  theory 
that  the  repulse  of  the  Indians  had  been  sufficiently 
decisive  to  induce  a  suspension  of  hostilities  and  a 


256          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

relinquishment  of  their  designs  to  capture  the  fort, 
if  not  a  relapse  into  the  former  pacific  relations. 
The  hunters  were  driven  back  by  a  smart  fire, 
returning  with  one  man  shot  through  the  leg, 
brought  in  by  a  comrade  on  horseback,  and  four 
others  riding  double,  leaving  their  slain  horses  on 
the  ground.  It  became  very  evident  that  the 
Cherokees  intended  to  maintain  a  blockade,  since 
the  fort  obviously  could  not  be  carried  by  storm, 
and  the  commandant  was  proof  against  surprise. 
To  send  the  hunters  out  again  was  but  to  incur  the 
futile  loss  of  life  and  thus  weaken  the  garrison.  The 
supply  of  fresh  game  already  in  the  fort  being  ex 
hausted,  the  few  head  of  cattle  and  the  reserves  of 
the  smoke-house  came  into  use. 

The  very  fact  that  such  reserves  had  been  pro 
vided  put  new  heart  into  the  soldiers  and  roused 
afresh  the  confidence  of  the  settlers,  who  had  begun 
to  quake  at  the  idea  of  standing  a  siege  so  suddenly 
begun,  without  warning  or  preparation,  save  indeed 
for  the  forethought  for  all  emergencies  manifested 
by  the  senior  officers.  Both  Demere  and  Stuart 
became  doubly  popular,  and  when  there  was  a  call 
for  volunteers  to  run  the  blockade  and  severally 
carry  dispatches  to  Colonel  Montgomery,  they  had 
but  to  choose  among  all  the  men  in  the  fort.  The 
tenor  of  these  dispatches  was  to  apprise  Colonel 
Montgomery  of  the  blockade  of  Fort  Loudon  and 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          257 

ask  relief,  urging  him  to  push  forward  at  once  and 
attack  the  Ottare  towns,  when  valuable  assistance 
could  be  rendered  him  by  the  ordnance  of  the  fort, 
as  well  as  by  a  detachment  of  infantry  from  the 
forces  of  the  garrison  attacking  the  Indians  on  the 
flank  in  support  of  the  aggressions  of  his  vanguard. 

Gilfillan  was  selected  as  the  earliest  express  sent 
out,  and  loud  and  woeful  was  Fifine's  outcry  when 
she  discovered  that  her  precious  "  Dill "  was  to  be 
withdrawn  from  her  sight.  But  when  he  declared 
that  he  needs  must  go  to  keep  the  Indians  from 
cutting  off  her  curls  and  starving  out  the  garrison 
—  Mrs.  Dean's  twin  babies  were  represented  as  the 
most  imminent  victims,  so  much  more  precious 
than  one,  "being  philopenas  "  as  O'Flynn  admon 
ished  her  —  she  consented,  and  tearfully  bade  him 
adieu.  And  he  kissed  her  very  gravely,  and  very 
gravely  at  her  request  kissed  the  cat.  So  with  these 
manifestations  of  his  simple  affection  he  goes  out  of 
these  pages  beyond  all  human  ken,  and  into  the 
great  unknown.  For  Dill  returned  no  more. 

His  long  backwoods  experience,  his  knowledge 
of  Indian  character,  his  wide  familiarity  with  the 
face  of  the  country,  and  many  by-ways  and  unfre 
quented  routes,  his  capacity  to  speak  the  Cherokee 
language,  all  combined  to  suggest  his  special  fitness 
for  the  dangerous  part  he  had  undertaken  to  play. 

The    next   express,  going    two   days    later    and 


258          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

following  the  beaten  track,  was  a  man  who  had 
frequently  served  in  this  capacity  and  knew  half  the 
Indians  of  the  Lower  Towns  and  Middle  Settle 
ments  by  name  —  a  quick-witted  pioneer,  "half- 
trader,  half-hunter,  and  half-packman,"  as  he  often 
described  himself,  and  he  had  been  in  the  country, 
he  boasted,  cc  ever  smce  it  was  built." 

The  choice  of  these  two  men  was  evidently  spe 
cially  judicious,  and  after  the  mysterious  disappear 
ance  of  each,  being  smuggled  out  of  the  fort  in  dead 
silence  and  the  darkest  hour  of  the  deep  night, 
the  garrison  settled  down  to  a  regular  routine,  to 
wear  away  the  time  till  they  might  wake  some 
morning  to  hear  the  crack  of  Montgomery's  mus 
ketry  on  the  horizon,  or  the  hissing  of  his  grenades 
burning  out  their  fuses  and  bursting  among  the 
dense  jungles,  where  the  Cherokees  lay  in  ambush 
and  blockaded  Fort  Loudon. 

The  military  precision  and  order  maintained  con 
tinued  as  strict  as  heretofore.  It  argued  no  slight 
attention  to  detail  and  adroit  handling  of  small 
opportunities  that  the  comfort  of  the  soldiers  was  in 
no  wise  reduced  by  the  intrusion  into  their  restricted 
domain  of  so  considerable  a  number  of  people,  many 
unprovided  with  the  most  ordinary  conveniences  of 
life.  Even  in  such  a  matter  as  table  and  cooking 
utensils  the  food  of  the  companies  was  served  as 
heretofore,  and  only  after  the  military  had  breakfasted 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          259 

or  dined,  or  supped,  could  their  precious  pewter 
platters  and  cups  be  borrowed  by  the  families,  to  be 
rigorously  cleaned  and  restored  before  the  prepara 
tions  began  for  the  next  meal.  Every  utensil  in 
the  place  did  double  duty,  yet  not  one  failed  to  be 
ready  for  service  when  required.  Mrs.  Halsing 
ventured  to  cavil,  and  suggested  that  she  had  always 
heard  elsewhere  that  it  was  polite  to  serve  ladies 
and  children  first,  instead  of  giving  a  lot  of  hulking 
soldiers  precedence. 

"  Why,  madam,"  Demere  said,  with  rebuking 
severity,  "  the  men  are  the  muscles  of  our  defense, 
and  must  be  kept  in  the  best  possible  physical  con 
dition." 

Nothing  was  allowed  to  interfere  with  the  regular 
hours  of  the  troops  or  break  their  rest.  Tattoo  and 
"  lights  out "  had  the  same  meaning  for  the  women 
and  children  and  wild  young  boys  as  for  the 
soldiery ;  no  boisterous  callow  cries  and  juvenile 
racing  and  chasing  were  permitted  on  the  parade ; 
no  belated  groups  of  gossipers ;  no  nocturnal  wailing 
of  wickedly  wakeful  infants  in  earshot. 

"  A-body  would  think  the  men  was  cherubim  or 
seraphim  the  way  the  commandant  cares  for  them," 
plained  Mrs.  Halsing. 

The  supplies  were  regulated  by  the  same  careful 
supervision  and  served  out  duly  by  weight  and 
allowance.  Somewhat  frugal  seemed  this  dole,  es- 


260          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

pecially  to  those  who  had  lived  on  the  unlimited 
profusion  of  the  woodland  game,  yet  it  was  suf 
ficient.  No  violent  exercise,  to  which  the  men  had 
been  accustomed,  required  now  the  restoring  of  ex 
hausted  tissues  by  a  generous  food  supply.  There 
was  ample  provision,  too,  made  for  the  occupation 
of  the  men's  attention  and  their  amusement.  The 
regular  cleaning  of  quarters,  inspection,  drill  and 
guard  duties,  and  dress-parades  went  on  as  hereto 
fore,  with  the  "fencibles  "  as  an  auxiliary  body.  The 
rude  games  of  ball,  ring  toss,  leap-frog  were  varied 
sometimes  by  an  exhibition,  given  under  the  aus 
pices  of  the  officers,  of  feats  of  strength ;  certain 
martial  Samsons  lifted  great  weights,  made  astonish 
ing  leaps,  ran  like  greyhounds  competing  with  one 
another  in  a  marked-off  course,  or  engaged  in 
wrestling-matches  —  to  the  unbounded  applause  of 
the  audience,  except  the  compassionate  Fifine,  who 
wept  loudly  and  inconsolably  whenever  a  stalwart 
fellow  caught  a  fall.  One  rainy  evening,  in  the 
officers*  mess-hall,  the  society  of  the  fort  was 
invited  to  hear  the  performance  of  a  clever  but 
rascally  fellow,  more  used  to  ride  the  wooden  horse 
than  to  any  other  occupation,  who  was  a  bit  of  a 
ventriloquist.  Among  other  feats  he  made  Fifine's 
cat  talk,  and  tell  about  Willinawaugh  with  "  him 
top-feathers,  him  head,  an*  him  ugly  mouf,"  to 
the  great  relish  of  his  comrades  (who  resented 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon         261 

the  fact  that  the  Indians,  exceedingly  vain  of  their 
own  personal  appearance,12  were  accustomed  to  speak 
of  the  paleface  as  the  "ugly  white  people");  to 
the  intense,  shrieking  delight  of  the  elder  chil 
dren  ;  and  to  the  amazement  of  Fifine,  who  could 
not  understand  afterward  why  the  douce  mignonne 
would  not  talk  to  her.  When  the  pretended  con 
versation  of  the  cat  grew  funnily  profane,  Cap 
tain  Demere  only  called  out  "  Time's  up/'  from 
the  back  of  the  hall,  and  the  fellow  came  sheepishly 
down  from  the  platform,  holding  the  borrowed  kitty 
by  the  nape  of  the  neck,  and  half  the  audience  did 
not  catch  the  funny  swear  that  he  attributed  to  the 
exemplary  feline.  Then  there  was  a  shadow-panto 
mime,  where  immaterial  roisterers  "played  Injun," 
and  went  through  the  horrid  details  of  scalping  and 
murders,  with  grotesque  concomitant  circumstances, 
—  such  as  the  terrifying  ricochet  effects  on  an  un 
sophisticated  red-man  of  riving  a  buzz-wig  from  the 
head  of  his  victim  in  lieu  of  a  real  scalp,  and  the 
consequent  sudden  exchange  of  the  characters  of 
pursued  and  pursuer,  —  all  of  which,  oddly  enough, 
the  people  who  stood  in  imminent  danger  of  a 
horrible  fate  thought  very  funny  indeed. 

One  evening  the  commandant  devised  a  new  plan 
to  pass  the  time.  All  were  summoned  to  the 
parade  ground  to  share  in  an  entertainment  desig 
nated  as  "  Songs  of  all  nations." 


262          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

"An'  I  could  find  it  in  my  stommick  to  wish  it 
was  to  share  in  c  Soups  of  all  nations/  "  said  Cor 
poral  O'Flynn  to  a  comrade,  For  it  seemed 
that  the  quartermaster-sergeant  had  docked  his 
rations  by  an  ounce  or  two,  a  difference  that  made 
itself  noted  in  so  slender  a  dole  and  a  convalescent's 
appetite. 

It  was  a  night  long  to  be  remembered.  The 
great  coils  of  Scorpio  seemed  covered  with  scintil 
lating  scales,  so  brilliant  were  the  stars.  No  cloud 
was  in  the  sky,  unless  one  might  so  call  that  seem 
ing  glittering  vapor,  the  resplendent  nebulose  clus 
ters  of  the  Galaxy.  A  wind  was  moving  through 
the  upper  atmosphere,  for  the  air  was  fresh  and  cool, 
but  below  was  the  soft,  sweet  stillness  of  the  sum 
mer  night,  full  of  fragrant  odors  from  the  woods, 
the  sound  of  the  swift-flowing  river,  the  outpour 
of  the  melody  of  a  mocking-bird  that  had  alighted 
on  the  tip  of  the  great  flagstaff,  and  seemed  to 
contribute  thence  his  share  to  the  songs  of  all 
nations.  He  caught  upon  his  white  wing  and  tail- 
feathers,  as  he  flirted  them,  the  clear  radiance  of  the 
moon,  —  not  a  great  orb,  but  sending  forth  a  light 
fair  enough  to  be  felt  in  all  that  sidereal  glitter  of 
the  cloudless  sky,  to  show  the  faces  of  Odalie  and 
Belinda  and  others  less  comely,  as  the  ladies  sat  in 
chairs  under  the  line  of  trees  on  one  side  of  the 
parade  with  a  group  of  officers  near  them,  and  the 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          263 

soldiers  and  "single  men"  and  children  of  the  settlers 
rilling  the  benches  of  the  post  which  were  brought 
out  for  the  occasion.  So  they  all  sang,  beginning 
with  a  great  chorus  of"  Rule  Britannia,"  into  which 
they  threw  more  force  and  patriotism  than  melody. 
Then  came  certain  solo  performances,  some  of  which 
were  curious  enough.  Odalie's  French  chanson- 
nettes  acquired  from  her  grand' maman,  drifting  out 
in  a  mellow  contralto  voice,  and  a  big  booming 
proclamation  concerning  the  "  Vaterland,"  by  the 
drum-major,  were  the  least  queerly  foreign.  Mrs. 
Raising,  after  much  pressing,  sang  an  outlandish, 
repetitious  melody  that  was  like  an  intricate  wooden 
recitative,  and  the  words  were  suspected  of  being 
Icelandic,  —  though  she  averred  they  were  High 
Dutch,  to  the  secret  indignation  of  the  drum-major, 
who,  as  O'Flynn  afterward  remarked,  when  discuss 
ing  the  details  of  the  evening,  felt  himself  qualified 
by  descent  to  judge,  his  own  father-in-law  having 
been  a  German.  The  men  who  had  sung  in  the 
Christmas  carols  remembered  old  English  ditties, — 

"  How  now,  shepherd,  what  means  that, 
Why  that  willow  in  thy  hat  ?  " 

and  "  Barbara  Allen."  Corporal  O'Flynn,  in  the 
most  incongruously  sentimental  and  melancholy  of 
tenors,  sang  cc  Savourneen  Deelish  eileen  ogg."  The 
sober  Sandy  gave  a  rollicking  Scotch  drinking-song 
that  seemed  to  show  the  very  bead  on  the  liquor, 


264          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

"Hey  the  browst,  and  hey  the  quaigh!".  The 
officers*  cook,  a  quaint  old  African,  seated  cross- 
legged  on  the  ground,  on  the  outskirts  of  the 
crowd,  piped  up  at  the  commandant's  bidding, 
and  half  sang,  half  recited,  in  a  wide,  deep,  musi 
cal  voice,  and  an  unheard-of  language  that  ex 
cited  great  interest  for  a  time ;  but  interpreting 
certain  manifestations  of  applause  among  the  soldiers 
as  guying,  he  took  himself  and  his  ear-rings  and  a 
gay  kerchief,  which  he  wore,  to  the  intense  delight  of 
the  garrison,  as  a  belt  around  the  waistband  of  his 
knee-breeches,  to  his  kitchen,  replying  with  cavalier 
insubordination, —  pioneer  of  the  domestic  manners 
of  these  days,  —  to  Captain  Stuart's  remonstrances 
by  the  assertion  that  he  had  to  wash  his  kettle. 

There  were  even  cradle  songs,  for  Mrs.  Dean, 
who  certainly  had  ample  field  for  efforts  in  that  line, 
sang  a  sweet  little  theme,  saying  she  knew  nothing 
else,  and  a  big  grenadier,  whose  hair  was  touched 
with  gray,  and  who  spoke  in  a  deep  sonorous  voice 
(the  Cherokees  had  always  called  him  Kanoona,  "  the 
bull-frog  " ),  respectfully  requested  to  know  of  the 
lady  if  she  could  sing  one  that  he  had  not  heard  for 
forty  years,  in  fact,  not  since  his  mother  sang  it  to 
him.  One  or  two  of  the  settlers,  hailing  originally 
from  England,  remembered  it  too,  and  some  discus 
sion  ensued  touching  the  words  and  the  exact  turn 
of  the  tune.  In  the  midst  of  this  a  wag  among  the 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          265 

younger  pioneers  mischievously  suggested  that  the 
grenadier  should  favor  them  with  a  rendition  of  his 
version,  and  the  big  soldier,  in  the  simplicity  of  his 
heart  and  his  fond  old  memories,  in  a  great  bass 
voice  that  fairly  trembled  with  its  own  weight,  be 
gan  "  Bye-low,  bye-low "  ;  and  the  ventriloquist 
who  had  made  the  cat  swear,  and  who  so  often  rode 
the  wooden  horse,  was  compelled  during  the  per 
formance  to  wear  his  hat  adjusted  over  his  face,  for 
his  grin  was  of  a  distention  not  to  be  tolerated  in 
polite  society. 

Perhaps  because  of  the  several  contradictory 
phases  of  interest  involved  in  this  contribution  to 
the  entertainment,  it  held  the  general  attention  more 
definitely  than  worthier  vocal  efforts  that  had  pre 
ceded  it,  and  the  incident  passed  altogether  unno 
ticed,  except  by  Captain  Stuart,  when  the  corporal 
of  the  guard  appeared  in  the  distance,  his  metal 
buttons  glimmering  from  afar  in  the  dusk  as  he 
approached,  and  Captain  Demere  softly  signaled  to 
him  to  pause,  and  rising  quietly  vanished  in  the 
shadow  of  the  block-house.  He  encountered  Stuart 
at  the  door,  for  he  had  also  slipped  away  from  the 
crowd,  himself,  like  a  shadow. 

"  Dispatches  ? "  he  asked. 

"  The  express  from  Fort  Prince  George,"  Demere 
replied,  his  voice  tense,  excited,  with  the  realization 
of  an  impending  crisis. 


CHAPTER   X 

DEMERE  was  not  a  man  to  consider  an 
omen  and  attach  weight  to  trifling  chances, 
yet  he  was  in  some  sort  prepared  for 
disaster.  Within  the  hall  a  pair  of  candles  stood 
on  the  table  where  it  was  the  habit  to  transact 
official  business,  —  to  write  letters;  to  construct 
maps  of  the  country  from  the  resources  of  the 
information  of  the  officers  and  the  descriptions  of 
the  Indians ;  to  make  out  reports  and  the  accounts 
of  the  post.  Writing  materials  were  kept  in  readi 
ness  here  for  these  purposes  —  a  due  array  of  quills, 
paper,  inkhorn,  wafers,  sealing-wax,  sand-box,  and 
lights.  As  the  door  was  opened  the  candles  flick 
ered  in  the  sudden  draught,  bowed  to  the  wicks 
grown  long  and  unsnuffed,  and  in  another  moment 
were  extinguished,  leaving  the  place  in  total  dark 
ness,  with  the  papers  on  which  hung  such  weighty 
interests  of  life  and  death,  of  rescue  or  despair,  un 
read  in  his  hand. 

"  The  tinder-box  —  the  flint  —  where  are  they  ? 
Cannot  you  strike  a  spark  ?  "  he  demanded,  in  agi 
tated  suspense,  of  Stuart,  who  made  more  than  one 

266 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          267 

fruitless  effort  before  the  timorous  flame  was  started 
anew  on  the  old  and  drooping  wicks,  which  had  to 
be  smartly  snuffed  before  they  would  afford  sufficient 
light  to  discern  the  hasty  characters,  that  looked  as 
if  they  might  have  been  written  on  a  drumhead  — 
as  in  fact  they  were. 

"Here  —  read  them,  John  —  I  can't,"  said 
Demere,  handing  the  package  to  Stuart,  and  throw 
ing  himself  into  a  chair  to  listen. 

Although  the  suspense  had  been  of  the  kind 
that  does  not  usually  herald  surcease  of  anxiety, 
he  was  not  prepared  for  the  face  of  consternation 
with  which  Stuart  silently  perused  the  scrawled 
lines. 

"  From  Montgomery  !  "  he  exclaimed.  "  But  our 
dispatches  evidently  have  never  reached  him." 

For  in  the  bold  strain  of  triumph  Colonel 
Montgomery  acquainted  the  commandant  of  Fort 
Loudon  with  the  successful  issue  of  his  campaign, 
having  lost  only  four  men,  although  he  had  burned 
a  number  of  Indian  towns,  destroyed  incalculable 
quantities  of  provisions,  killed  and  wounded  many 
braves,  and  was  carrying  with  him  a  train  of  prison 
ers,  men,  women,  and  children.  He  was  now  on 
the  march  to  the  relief  of  Fort  Prince  George, 
which  the  savages  had  invested,  where  the  garrison 
was  in  much  distress,  not  for  the  want  of  provisions 
but  for  fuel  to  cook  food,  since  the  enemy  was  in 


268          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

such  force  that  no  sortie  could  be  made  to  the  woods 
to  procure  a  supply.  Two  of  his  prisoners  he  had 
set  at  liberty,  Fiftoe,  and  the  old  warrior  of  Esta- 
toe,  that  they  might  acquaint  the  nation  of  his 
further  intentions,  for,  if  the  Indians  did  not  imme 
diately  sue  for  peace  and  deliver  up  the  principal 
transgressors  to  justice,  he  would  sally  forth  from 
Fort  Prince  George  on  another  foray,  and  he  would 
not  hold  his  hand  till  he  had  burned  every  Chero 
kee  town  of  the  whole  nation.  He  deputed  Captain 
Stuart  and  Captain  Demere  to  offer  these  terms  to 
the  Upper  towns,  and  let  them  know  that  they  were 
admitted  to  this  clemency  solely  in  consideration 
of  the  regard  of  the  government  for  Atta-Kulla- 
Kulla.  This  chieftain,  the  half-king  of  the  Chero 
kee  tribe,  had  deprecated,  it  was  understood,  the 
renewal  of  the  war,  since  he  had  signed  the  last  treaty 
at  the  Congarees,  and  having  shown  himself  friendly 
on  several  occasions  to  the  British  people  his  ma 
jesty's  government  esteemed  him  as  he  deserved. 

The  two  officers  gazed  silently  at  one  another. 
Montgomery  was  obviously  entirely  unaware  of 
their  situation.  Here  they  were,  penned  up  in 
this  restricted  compass,  besieged  by  an  enemy  so 
furious  that  even  a  hat  showing  but  for  one  moment 
above  the  palisades,  —  for  the  soldiers  had  tried  the 
experiment  of  poising  an  old  busby  on  the  point  of 
a  bayonet,  —  would  be  riddled  in  an  instant.  Often 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          269 

a  well-directed  bullet  would  enter  the  small  loop 
holes  for  musketry,  and  thus,  firing  from  ambush, 
endanger  the  sentinel  as  he  stood  within  the  strong 
defenses.  More  than  once  arrows,  freighted  with 
inflammable  substances,  all  ablaze,  had  been  shot 
into  the  fort  with  the  effort  to  fire  the  houses ;  it 
was  dry  weather  mostly,  with  a  prospect  of  a  long 
drought,  and  the  flames  thus  started  threatened  a  con 
flagration,  and  required  the  exertions  of  the  entire 
garrison  to  extinguish  them.  This  proclivity  neces 
sitated  eternal  vigilance.  Ever  and  anon  it  was 
requisite  that  the  cannon  should  renew  their  strong, 
surly  note  of  menace,  and  again  send  the  balls  crash 
ing  through  the  forest,  and  about  the  ears  of  the 
persistent  besiegers.  Only  the  strength  of  the 
primitive  work  saved  the  garrison  from  instant  mas 
sacre,  with  the  women  and  children  and  the  settlers 
who  had  sought  safety  behind  those  sturdy  ramparts. 
Of  the  ultimate  danger  of  starvation  the  officers  did 
not  dare  to  think.  And  from  this  situation  to  be 
summoned  to  send  forth  threats  of  sword  and  fire, 
and  to  offer  arrogant  terms  of  peace,  and  to  demand 
the  surrender,  to  the  justice  of  the  gibbet,  of  the 
principal  transgressors  in  the  violation  of  the  treaty  ! 
There  were  no  words  that  could  express  what 
they  felt.  They  could  only  look  at  one  another, 
each  conscious  of  the  other's  sympathy,  and  say 
nothing. 


2jo         The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

Outside,  Odalie,  Belinda,  and  Ensign  Whitson 
were  singing  a  trio,  the  parts  somewhat  at  hap 
hazard,  the  fugue-like  effects  coming  in  like  the 
cadences  of  the  wind,  now  high,  now  low,  and  in 
varying  strength.  The  stars  still  glittered  down  into 
the  parade  ;  the  moon  cast  a  gentle  shadow  along  the 
palisades ;  the  sentries  in  the  block-house  towers, 
the  gunners  lying  flat  beneath  their  great  cannon, 
feeling  the  dew  on  their  faces,  looking  toward  the 
moon,  the  guard  ready  to  turn  out  at  the  word,  — 
all  listened  languorously,  and  drank  in  the  sweets  of 
the  summer  night  with  the  music.  A  scene  almost 
peaceful,  despite  the  guarded  walls,  and  the  savage 
hordes  outside,  balked,  and  furious,  and  thirsting 
for  blood. 

"  Let  us  see  the  express,  Paul,"  said  Stuart  at 
last. 

The  express  had  repeatedly  served  as  a  means  of 
communication  between  Fort  Loudon  and  Fort 
Prince  George,  and  as  he  carne  in  he  cautiously 
closed  the  door.  He  was  a  man  of  war,  himself,  in 
some  sort,  and  was  aware  that  a  garrison  is  hardly  to 
be  included  in  the  conference  between  commanders 
of  a  frontier  force  and  their  chosen  emissary.  With 
the  inside  of  his  packet  his  brain  was  presumed  to 
have  no  concern,  but  in  such  a  time  and  such  a 
country  his  eyes  and  ears,  on  his  missions  to  and 
fro,  did  such  stalwart  service  in  the  interests  of  his 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          271 

own  safety  that  he  was  often  able  to  give  the  officers 
at  the  end  of  his  route  far  more  important  news,  the 
fruits  of  his  observation,  than  his  dispatches  were 
likely  to  unfold.  He  was  of  stalwart  build,  and 
clad  in  the  fringed  buckskin  shirt  and  leggings  of 
the  hunter,  and  holding  his  coonskin  cap  in  his  hand. 
He  had  saluted  after  the  military  fashion,  and  had 
evidently  been  enough  the  inmate  of  frontier  posts 
to  have  some  regard  for  military  rank.  He  waited, 
despite  his  look  of  having  much  of  moment  to  com 
municate,  until  the  question  had  been  casually  pro 
pounded  by  Stuart :  "  Well,  what  can  you  tell  us  of 
the  state  of  the  country  ?  "  then  in  disconnected 
sentences  the  details  came  in  torrents. 

Montgomery's  campaign  had  been  something 
unheard  of.  His  "  feet  were  winged  with  fire  and 
destruction,"  —  that  was  what  Oconostota  said.  Oh, 
yes,  the  express  had  seen  Oconostota.  But  for 
Oconostota  he  could  not  have  made  Fort  Loudon. 
He  had  let  him  come  with  the  two  warriors,  set  free 
by  Montgomery  to  suggest  terms  of  peace  and 
spread  the  news  of  the  devastation,  as  a  safe-guard 
against  any  straggling  white  people  they  might 
chance  to  meet,  and  in  return  they  afforded  him 
safe-conduct  from  the  Cherokees.  The  devastation 
was  beyond  belief,  —  dead  and  dying  Indians  lying 
all  around  the  lower  country,  and  many  were  burned 
alive  in  their  houses  when  the  towns  were  fired. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

Many  were  now  pitifully  destitute.  As  the  fugitives 
stood  on  the  summits  of  distant  hills  and  watched 
their  blazing  homes  and  great  granaries  of  corn  — 
"  I  could  but  be  sorry  for  them  a  little,"  declared 
Major  Grant  of  Montgomery's  command. 

But  the  result  was  not  to  be  what  Montgomery 
hoped.  The  Cherokees  were  arming  anew  every 
where.  They  would  fight  now  to  the  death,  to  ex 
termination,  —  even  Atta-Kulla-Kulla,  who  had  been 
opposed  to  breaking  the  treaty.  Oh,  yes,  he  had 
seen  Atta-Kulla-Kulla.  The  chief  said  he  would 
not  strike  a  blow  with  a  feather  to  break  a  treaty 
and  his  solemn  word.  But  to  avenge  the  blood  of 
his  kindred  that  cried  out  from  the  ground  he  would 
give  his  life,  if  he  had  as  many  years  to  live  as  there 
were  hairs  on  his  head !  The  express  added  that 
Atta-Kulla-Kulla  had  been  sitting  on  the  ground  in 
his  old  blanket,  with  ashes  on  his  head,  after  the 
council  agreed  to  break  the  treaty.  But  now  he  was 
going  round  with  his  scalp-lock  dressed  out  with 
fresh  eagle-feathers,  and  armed  with  his  gun,  and 
tomahawk,  and  scalp-knife,  and  wearing  his  finest 
gear,  and  with  all  his  war-paint  on  —  one  side  of  his 
face  red,  and  the  other  black,  with  big  white  circles 
around  his  eyes,  —  "looks  mighty  keen,"  the  man 
exclaimed  with  a  sort  of  relish  of  the  fine  barbaric 
effect  of  the  fighting  trim  of  the  great  warrior. 

Then  his  face  fell. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          273 

"  And  I  told  Oconostota  that  I  would  not  deliver 
his  message  to  you,  Captain  Stuart  and  Captain 
Demere,  sir,"  he  hesitated ;  "  it  was  not  fit  for  your 
worshipful  presence ;  and  he  said  that  the  deed 
might  go  before  the  word,  then." 

"  What  message  did  he  send  ?  "  asked  Demere, 
with  flashing  eyes. 

"  Well,  sir,  he  said  Fort  Loudon  was  theirs,  — 
that  it  was  built  for  the  Cherokees,  and  they  had 
paid  the  English  nation  for  it  in  the  blood  they  had 
shed  in  helping  the  Virginians  defend  their  frontier 
against  the  French  and  their  Indian  allies.  But  you 
English  had  possessed  the  fort ;  you  had  claimed  it ; 
and  now  he  would  say  that  it  was  yours,  —  yours 
to  be  burnt  in,  —  to  be  starved  in,  —  to  die  in,  — 
to  leave  your  bones  in,  till  they  are  thrust  forth  by 
the  rightful  owner  to  be  gnawed  by  the  wolf  of  the 
wilderness." 

There  was  a  momentary  silence. 

"  Vastly  polite !  "  exclaimed  Captain  Stuart,  with  a 
rollicking  laugh. 

"  Lord,  sir,"  said  the  man,  as  if  the  sound  grated 
upon  him,  "  they  are  a  dreadful  people.  I  wouldn't 
go  through  again  what  I  have  had  to  risk  to  get 
here  for  —  any  money!  It  has  been  full  three 
weeks  since  I  left  Oconostota's  camp.  He  is  with 
the  Lower  towns  —  him  and  Atta-Kulla-Kulla,  but 
Willinawaugh  is  the  head-man  of  the  force  out  here. 


274          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

They  seemed  to  think  I  was  spying,  —  but  they 
have  got  so  many  men  that  I  just  doubts  but  what 
they  want  you  should  know  their  strength." 

"You  will  go  back  to  Colonel  Montgomery  at 
Fort  Prince  George  with  dispatches  ?  "  said  Demere. 

The  man's  expression  hardened.  "  Captain  De- 
mere,"  he  said,  "and  Captain  Stuart,  sir,  I  have 
served  you  long  and  faithful.  You  know  I  bean't 
no  coward.  But  it  is  certain  death  for  me  to  go  out 
of  that  sally-port.  I  couldn't  have  got  in  except  for 
that  message  from  Oconostota.  He  wanted  you  to 
hear  that.  I  believe  c  Old  Hop'  thinks  Willina- 
waugh  can  terrify  you  out  of  this  place  if  they  can't 
carry  it  by  storm.  I  misdoubts  but  they  expects 
Frenchmen  to  join  them.  They  talk  so  sweet  on 
the  French !  Every  other  word  is  Louis  Latinac ! 
That  French  officer  has  made  them  believe  that  the 
English  intend  to  exterminate  the  Cherokees  from 
off  the  face  of  the  earth." 

He  paused  a  moment  in  rising  discontent,  —  to 
have  done  so  much,  yet  refuse  aught !  "  I  wouldn't 
have  undertook  to  bring  that  message  from  Ocono 
stota  except  I  thought  it  was  important  for  you  to 
have  your  dispatches ;  it  ain't  my  fault  if  they  ain't 
satisfactory."  He  cast  a  glance  of  the  keenest  curi 
osity  at  the  papers,  and  Captain  Stuart,  lazily  filling 
his  pipe,  took  one  of  the  candles  in  his  hand  and 
kindled  the  tobacco  at  the  blaze. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          275 

"  Nothing  is  satisfactory  that  is  one-sided,"  he 
said  easily.  "We  don't  want  Colonel  Montgomery 
to  do  all  the  talking,  and  to  have  to  receive  his 
letters  as  orders.  We  propose  to  say  a  word  our 
selves." 

A  gleam  of  intelligence  was  in  the  scout's  eyes. 
It  was  a  time  when  there  was  much  professional 
jealousy  rife  in  the  various  branches  of  the  service, 
and  he  had  been  cleverly  induced  to  fancy  that  here 
was  a  case  in  point.  These  men  had  a  command 
altogether  independent  of  Colonel  Montgomery,  it 
was  true,  but  he  was  of  so  much  higher  rank  that 
doubtless  this  galled  them,  and  rendered  them 
prone  to  assert  their  own  position.  He  bent  his 
energies  now,  however,  to  a  question  touching  his 
pay,  and  answering  a  seemingly  casual  inquiry  rela 
tive  to  the  fact  that  he  had  heard  naught  of  Gilfil- 
lan  and  the  other  express,  was  dismissed  without 
being  subjected  to  greater  urgency. 

The  two  maintained  silence  for  a  time,  the  coal 
dying  in  Captain  Stuart's  pipe  as  he  absently  con 
templated  the  fireless  chimney-place  filled  now  with 
boughs  of  green  pine. 

Demere  spoke  first.  "  If  we  can  get  no  commu 
nication  with  Colonel  Montgomery  it  means  certain 
death  to  all  the  garrison." 

"  Sooner  or  later,"  assented  Stuart. 

The  problem  stayed  with  them   all  that  night. 


2j6          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

They  were  forced  to  maintain  a  cheerful  casual  guise 
in  the  presence  of  their  little  public,  and  the  appear 
ance  of  the  express  put  great  heart  into  the  soldiery. 
The  fact  that  the  commandant  was  in  the  immedi 
ate  receipt  of  advices  from  Colonel  Montgomery 
and  his  victorious  army  seemed  itself  a  pledge  of 
safety.  The  express  was  turned  loose  among  them 
to  rehearse  the  exploits  of  Montgomery's  troops, — 
the  splendid  forced  marches  they  made ;  the  execu 
tion  of  their  marksmanship ;  the  terror  that  the 
Cherokees  manifested  of  their  sputtering  grenades, 
hurled  exploding  into  the  ambuscades  by  the  stal 
wart  grenadiers  at  the  word,  — "  Fall  on  "  ;  the 
interest  of  the  Indians  in  the  sound  of  the  bagpipes 
and  in  the  national  dress,  the  plaid  and  philibeg, 
of  the  Highlanders,  which,  although  now  generally 
proscribed  by  law,  was  continued  as  a  privilege 
granted  to  those  enlisted  in  regiments  in  the  British 
army.  He  told  of  the  delight  of  the  Highlanders  in 
the  sight  of  the  Great  Smoky  Mountains,  how  they 
rejoiced  to  climb  the  crags  and  steep  ravines  even  of 
the  foothills.  He  repeated  jokes  and  gibes  of  the 
camp  outside  Fort  Prince  George,  for  Montgomery 
had  overtaken  him  and  raised  the  siege  before  he 
reached  the  fort,  so  difficult  was  the  slow  progress 
of  the  express  among  the  inimical  Cherokees.  He 
detailed  Colonel  Montgomery's  relish  of  the  sight 
of  a  piece  of  field  artillery  which  Ensign  Milne 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          277 

showed  him ;  that  officer  had  mounted  it  one  day 
before  the  siege  when  he  was  with  a  detail  that  he 
had  ordered  into  the  woods  to  get  fuel  for  the  post, 
and  a  band  of  Cherokees  had  descended  upon  him, 
—  "a  Quaker,"  he  called  it;  you  might  have  heard 
Colonel  Montgomery  laugh  two  hundred  miles  to 
Fort  Loudon,  for  of  course  it  wouldn't  fight,  —  a 
very  powerful  Friend,  indeed,  —  only  a  black  log 
mounted  between  two  wheels,  which  the  soldiers 
had  been  in  the  habit  of  using  to  ease  up  the  loads 
of  wood.  But  the  Indians  were  deceived,  and  with 
their  terror  of  artillery  got  out  of  range  in  short 
order,  and  the  soldiers  made  their  way  back  into  the 
fort  under  the  protection  of  their  "  little  Quaker." 

When  the  barracks  were  lost  in  slumber,  and  the 
parade  was  deserted  but  for  the  moon,  and  the  soft 
wind,  and  the  echo  of  the  tramp  of  the  sentry, 
Captain  Stuart  went  over  to  Captain  Demere's 
house,  and  there  until  late  the  two  discussed  the 
practicabilities,  that  each,  like  a  blind  trail,  promised 
thoroughfare  and  led  but  to  confusion.  The  offi 
cers  did  not  dare  to  call  for  volunteers  to  carry 
dispatches  to  Montgomery,  in  the  face  of  the  fact 
that  the  express  just  arrived  could  not  be  prevailed 
on  to  return.  Without,  moreover,  some  assurance 
of  the  safety  of  the  messengers  previously  sent  out, 
no  man  would  now  so  lightly  venture  his  life  as  to 
seek  to  slip  through  the  vigilant  savage  hordes. 


278          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

To  explain  the  terrors  of  the  crisis  to  the  garrison 
would  be  to  have  the  ferocious  Cherokees  without, 
and  panic,  mutiny,  and  violence  within.  Yet  a  man 
must  go ;  a  man  who  would  return ;  a  man  who 
would  risk  torture  and  death  twice.  "  For  we  must 
have  some  assurance  of  the  delivery  of  our  dis 
patches,"  Stuart  argued.  "  I  am  anxious  as  to  the 
homing  qualities  of  our  dove  that  we  are  about  to 
send  out  of  this  ark  of  ours,"  he  said,  as  he  lay 
stretched  out  at  full  length  on  the  buffalo  rug  on 
the  floor,  in  the  moonlight  that  fell  so  peacefully 
in  at  the  window  of  his  friend's  bedroom.  Demere 
was  recumbent  on  his  narrow  camp-bed,  so  still,  so 
silent,  that  more  than  once  Stuart  asked  him  if  he 
slept. 

"How  can  I  sleep,  —  with  this  sense  of  responsi 
bility  ?  "  Demere  returned,  reproachfully. 

But  Stuart  slept  presently,  waking  once  to  reply 
to  Demere' s  remark  that  a  married  man  would  have 
the  homing  quality  desired,  the  fort  holding  his 
family ;  Stuart  declared  that  no  one  would  be  will 
ing  to  leave  wife  and  children  to  such  protection  as 
other  men  might  have  presence  of  mind  to  give 
them  in  a  desperate  crisis.  The  mere  communica 
tion  might  create  a  panic. 

"  Of  all  things,"  said  Stuart,  as  he  lay  at  his  stal 
wart  length,  his  long,  fair  hair  blowsing  in  the  wind 
over  the  rug,  "  I  am  most  afraid  of  fear." 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          279 

When  Demere  presently  asked  him  if  he  were 
quite  comfortable  down  there,  his  unceremonious 
presence  placing  him  somewhat  in  the  position  of 
guest,  his  silence  answered  for  him,  and  he  did  not 
again  speak  or  stir  until  the  drums  were  sounding 
without  and  the  troops  were  falling  in  line  for  roll- 
call. 

Neither  gave  sign  of  their  vigil ;  they  both  were 
exceedingly  spruce,  and  fresh,  and  well  set  up,  to  sus 
tain  the  covert  scrutiny  of  the  garrison,  who  regarded 
them  as  a  sort  of  moral  barometer  of  the  situation, 
and  sought  to  discern  in  their  appearance  the  tenor 
of  Montgomery's  official  dispatches. 

That  morning,  when  Stuart  went  with  his  spy 
glass  to  reconnoiter  from  the  tower  of  one  of  the 
block-houses,  he  noted,  always  keenly  observant,  a 
trifle  of  confusion,  as  he  entered,  in  the  manner  of 
the  sentinel,  —  the  smart,  fair-haired,  freckled-faced 
young  soldier  whose  services  were  sometimes  used 
as  orderly,  and  whose  name  was  Daniel  Eske.  The 
boy  immediately  sought  to  appear  unconcerned. 
The  officer  asked  no  question.  He  raised  the  glass 
to  his  eye  and  in  one  moment  discerned,  amongst 
the  laurel  jungles  close  to  the  river,  an  Indian,  a 
young  girl,  who  suddenly  lifted  her  arm  and  grace 
fully  waved  her  hand  toward  the  bastion.  Stuart 
lowered  the  glass  and  gravely  looked  a  grim  inquiry 
at  the  young  soldier. 


280          The  Story  of  Old   Fort  London 

Daniel  Eske  answered  precipitately  :  "  For  God's 
sake,  sir,  don't  let  this  go  against  me.  I'm  not 
holding  any  communication  with  the  enemy,  —  the 
red  devils.  That  baggage,  sir,  has  been  twice  a- 
waving  her  hand  to  me  when  I  have  been  on  guard 
here.  I  never  took  no  notice,  so  help  me  God,  — 
Captain,— I—" 

The  distance  being  minimized  by  the  lens,  Stuart 
could  discern  all  the  coquettish  details  of  the  appa 
rition  ;  the  garb  of  white  dressed  doe  skin  —  a 
fabric  as  soft  and  flexible,  the  writers  of  that  day 
tell  us,  as  "velvet  cloth"  —  the  fringed  borders  of 
which  were  hung  with  shells  and  bits  of  tinkling 
metal ;  the  hair,  duly  anointed,  black  and  lustrous, 
dressed  high  on  the  head  and  decorated  with  small 
wings  of  the  red  bird ;  many  strings  of  red  beads 
dangled  about  the  neck,  and  the  moccasons  were 
those  so  highly  valued  by  the  Indians,  painted  an 
indelible  red.  With  a  definite  realization  of  the 
menace  of  treachery  in  her  presence,  Stuart's  face 
was  stern  indeed  as  he  looked  at  her.  All  at  once 
his  expression  changed. 

"  Do  as  I  bid  you,"  he  said  to  the  sentry,  suddenly 
remembering  "  Wing-of-the-Flying-Whip-poor- 
will,"  and  her  talk  of  the  handsome  young  orderly 
with  his  gold  hair  and  freckles,  and  his  gossip  touch 
ing  the  Scotchman's  beautiful  French  wife,  whom  she 
regarded  merely  as  a  captive.  "  Wait  till  she  waves 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          281 

again.  But  no,  —  she  is  going,  —  show  yourself  at 
the  window,  —  must  risk  a  shot  now  and  then." 

The  loop-hole  here  attained  the  size  of  a  small 
window,  being  commanded  only  by  the  river,  which 
would  expose  any  marksman  to  a  direct  return  fire. 

"  Now,  she  sees  you,"  exclaimed  Stuart,  as  the 
young  fellow's  face  appeared  in  the  aperture,  gruff, 
sheepish,  consciously  punished  and  ridiculous,  — 
how  could  he  dream  of  Stuart's  scheme  !  "  Take 
off  your  hat.  Wave  it  to  her.  Wave  it  with  a 
will,  man  !  There,  —  she  responds.  That  will 
do."  Then,  with  a  change  of  tone,  "  I  advise  you, 
for  your  own  good,  to  stay  away  from  that  window, 
for  if  any  man  in  this  garrison  is  detected  in  engaging 
in  sign  language  with  the  enemy  he  will  certainly  be 
court-martialed  and  shot." 

"  Captain,"  protested  the  boy,  with  tears  in  his 
eyes,  "  I'd  as  lieve  be  shot  now,  sir,  as  to  have  you 
think  I  would  hold  any  communication  with  the 
enemy,  —  the  warriors.  As  to  that  girl,  —  the  for 
ward  hussy  came  there  herself.  I  took  no  notice 
of  her  waving  her  hand.  I'd  —  " 

But  Captain  Stuart  was  half  down  the  ladder,  and, 
despite  young  Eske's  red  coat,  and  the  fact  that  he 
smelled  powder  with  more  satisfaction  than  perfume, 
and  could  hear  bullets  whizzing  about  his  head  with 
out  dodging,  and  had  made  forced  marches  without 
flinching,  when  he  could  scarce  bear  his  sore  feet  to 


282          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

the  ground,  the  tears  in  his  eyes  overflowed  upon 
the  admired  freckles  on  his  cheek,  and  he  shed  them 
for  the  imputation  of  Captain  Stuart's  warning  as  to 
communicating  with  the  enemy. 

That  officer  had  forgotten  him  utterly,  except  as 
a  factor  in  his  plan.  He  sat  so  jocund  and  cheerful 
beside  the  table  in  the  great  hall  that  Odalie,  sum 
moned  thither,  looked  at  him  in  surprise,  thinking 
he  must  have  received  some  good  news,  —  a  theory 
corrected  in  another  moment  by  the  downcast, 
remonstrant,  doubtful  expression  on  Demere's  face. 
He  rose  to  offer  her  a  chair,  and  Stuart,  closing  the 
door  behind  her,  replied  to  something  he  had  already 
said :  — 

"  At  all  events  it  is  perfectly  safe  to  lay  the  matter 
before  Mrs.  MacLeod." 

To  this  Demere  responded  disaffectedly,  "  Oh, 
certainly,  beyond  a  doubt." 

"  Mrs.  MacLeod,"  said  Stuart  deliberately,  and 
growing  very  grave,  as  he  sat  opposite  to  her  with 
one  hand  on  the  table,  "  we  are  trusting  very 
deeply  to  your  courage  and  discretion  when  I  tell 
you  that  our  situation  here  is  very  dangerous,  and 
the  prospect  nearly  desperate." 

She  looked  at  him  silently  in  startled  dismay. 
She  thought  of  her  own,  of  all  that  she  loved.  And 
for  a  moment  her  heart  stood  still. 

u  You  know  that  all  received  methods,  all  military 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          283 

usages,  fail  as  applied  to  Indian  warfare.  You  can 
be  of  the  greatest  service  to  us  in  this  emergency. 
Will  you  volunteer  ?  "  There  was  a  little  smile 
at  the  corner  of  Stuart's  lip  as  he  looked  at  her 
steadily. 

"  No,  no,  I  protest,"  cried  Demere.  "  Tell  her 
first  what  she  is  to  do." 

"  No,"  said  Stuart,  cc  when  you  agreed  to  the 
plan  you  expressly  stipulated  that  you  were  to  have 
no  responsibility.  Now  if  Mrs.  MacLeod  volun 
teers  it  is  as  a  soldier  and  unquestioningly  under 
orders." 

"  It  is  sudden,"  hesitated  Odalie.  "  May  I  tell 
my  husband  ?  " 

"Would  he  allow  you  to  risk  yourself?  "  asked 
Stuart.  "And  yet  it  is  for  yourself,  your  husband, 
your  child,  the  garrison,  —  to  save  all  our  lives,  God 
willing." 

Odalie's  color  rose,  her  eyes  grew  bright.  "  I 
know  I  can  trust  you  to  make  the  risk  as  slight  as 
it  may  be,  —  to  place  me  in  no  useless  danger.  I 
volunteer." 

The  two  men  looked  at  her  for  one  moment,  their 
hearts  in  their  eyes. 

Then  Captain  Stuart  broke  out  with  his  reassur 
ing  raillery.  "I  always  knew  it,  —  such  a  proclivity 
for  the  military  life !  In  the  king's  service  at 
last." 


284          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

Odalie  laughed,  but  Captain  Demere  could  not 
compass  a  smile. 

Stuart's  next  question  she  thought  a  bit  of  his 
fun.  "  Have  you  here,"  he  said,  with  deep  gravity, 
"  some  stout  gown,  fashioned  with  plaits  and  full 
ness  in  the  skirt,  and  a  cape  or  fichu,  —  is  that  what 
you  call  it, — about  the  shoulders  ?  And,  yes,  —  that 
large  red  hood,  calash,  that  you  wore  the  first  day 
you  arrived  at  the  fort,"  —  his  ready  smile  flickered, 
—  "  on  an  understanding  so  little  pleasing  to  your 
taste.  Go  get  them  on,  and  meet  me  at  the  north 
western  bastion." 

The  young  soldier,  Daniel  Eske,  still  standing 
guard  in  the  block-house  tower,  looked  out  on  a 
scene  without  incident.  The  river  shone  in  the 
clear  June  daylight ;  the  woods  were  dark,  and  fresh 
with  dew  and  deeply  green,  and  so  dense  that  they 
showed  no  token  of  broken  boughs  and  riven  bole, 
results  of  the  cannonade  they  had  sustained,  which 
still  served  to  keep  at  a  distance,  beyond  the  range 
of  the  guns,  the  beleaguering  cordon  of  savages,  and 
thus  prevent  surprise  or  storm.  Nevertheless  there 
were  occasional  lurking  Indians,  spies,  or  stragglers 
from  the  main  line,  amongst  the  dense  boughs  of 
the  blooming  rhododendron  ;  he  saw  from  time  to 
time  skulking  painted  faces  and  feathers  fluttering 
from  lordly  scalp-locks,  which  rendered  so  much  the 
more  serious  and  probable  the  imputation  of  com- 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          285 

municating  with  the  enemy  that  the  presence  and 
gestures  of  Choo-qualee-qualoo,  still  lingering  there, 
had  contrived  to  throw  upon  him.  Her  folly  might 
have  cost  him  his  life.  He  might  have  been  sen 
tenced  to  be  shot  by  his  own  comrades,  discovered 
to  be  holding  communication  with  the  enemy,  and 
that  enemy  the  Cherokees,  —  good  sooth  ! 

Suddenly  rampant  in  his  mind  was  a  wild  strange 
suspicion  of  treachery.  His  abrupt  cry, cc  Halt,  or  I 
fire  ! "  rang  sharply  on  the  air,  and  his  musket  was 
thrust  through  the  window,  aiming  in  intimidation 
down  alongside  the  parapet,  where  upon  the  exte 
rior  slope  of  the  rampart  the  beautiful  Carolina  girl, 
the  French  wife  of  the  Scotch  settler,  had  contrived 
to  creep  through  the  embrasure  below  the  muzzle 
of  the  cannon,  for  the  ground  had  sunk  a  trifle  there 
with  the  weight  of  the  piece  or  through  some  defect 
of  the  gabions  that  helped  build  up  the  "cheek," 
and  she  now  stood  at  full  height  on  the  berm,  above 
the  red  clay  slope  of  the  scarp,  signing  to  Choo- 
qualee-qualoo  with  one  hand,  and  with  the  other 
motioning  toward  the  muzzle  of  his  firelock,  mutely 
imploring  him  to  desist. 

How  did  she  dare  !  The  light  tint  of  her  gray 
gown  rendered  her  distinct  against  the  deep  rich 
color  of  the  red  clay  slope  ;  her  calash,  of  a  different, 
denser  red,  was  a  mark  for  a  rifle  that  clear  day  a 
long  way  off.  He  was  acutely  conscious  of  those 


286          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

skulking  braves  in  the  woods,  all  mute  and  motion 
less  now,  watching  with  keen  eyes  the  altercation 
with  the  sentry,  and  he  shuddered  at  her  possible 
fate,  even  while,  with  an  unrealized  mental  process, 
doubts  arose  of  her  loyalty  to  the  interests  of  the 
garrison,  which  her  French  extraction  aided  her 
strange,  suspicious  demonstration  to  foster.  He 
flushed  with  a  violent  rush  of  resentment  when  he 
became  aware  that  Choo-qualee-qualoo  was  signing 
to  him  also,  with  entreating  gestures,  and  so  keen- 
eyed  had  the  Indian  warfare  rendered  him  that  he 
perceived  that  she  was  prompted  to  this  action  by 
a  brave, — he  half  fancied  him  Willinawaugh, — who 
knelt  in  the  pawpaw  bushes  a  short  distance  from 
the  Cherokee  girl  and  spoke  to  her  ever  and  anon. 

"  One  step  further  and  I  fire  ! "  he  called  out  to 
Odalie,  flinching  nevertheless,  as  he  looked  down 
into  her  clear,  hazel,  upturned  eyes.  Then  over 
whelmed  by  a  sense  of  responsibility  he  raised  the 
weapon  to  fire  into  the  air  and  lifted  the  first  note  of  a 
wild  hoarse  cry  for  "  Corporal  of  the  guard,"  — and 
suddenly  heard  O'Flynn's  voice  behind  him  :  — 

"  Shet  up,  ye  blethering  bull-calf!  The  leddy's 
actin'  under  orders." 

And  not  only  was  O'Flynn  behind  him  but 
Stuart. 

"Sign  to  Mrs.  MacLeod  that  she  may  go,"  said 
that  officer,  "  but  not  for  long.  Shake  your  head, 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          287 

—  seem  doubtful.  Then  take  your  hat  and  wave 
it  to  the  Cherokee  wench,  as  if  you  relent  for  her 
sake ! " 

"  Oh,  sir, — I  can't,"  exclaimed  the  young  soldier 
even  while  he  obeyed,  expressing  the  revolt  in  his 
mind  against  the  action  of  his  muscles. 

"  It's  mighty  hard  to  kape  the  girls  away  from 
ye,  but  we  will  lend  ye  a  stick  nex'  time,"  said 
Corporal  O'Flynn,  in  scornful  ridicule  of  his  re 
luctance,  not  aware  of  the  imputation  of  colloguing 
with  the  enemy  to  which  the  long-range  flirtation 
with  Choo-qualee-qualoo  had  seemed  to  expose  him 
in  Captain  Stuart's  mind. 

Captain  Stuart  had  placed  in  a  loop-hole  the 
muzzle  of  a  firelock,  which  he  sighted  himself. 
O'Flynn  leveled  another,  both  men  being  of  course 
invisible  from  without;  as  the  young  sentinel 
obeyed  the  order  to  openly  lounge  in  the  window  and 
look  toward  Choo-qualee-qualoo  he  could  see  within 
the  parapet  that  the  gunners  of  the  battery  were 
standing  to  their  shotted  pieces,  Captain  Demere, 
himself,  in  command.  With  this  provision  against 
capture,  or  for  revenge,  one  might  fear,  rather  than 
protection,  Odalie  took  her  way  down  the  steep 
slope  amongst  the  impeding  stakes  of  the  fraises, 
thickly  sown,  and  looking,  it  might  seem,  like 
dragons'  teeth  in  process  of  sprouting.  More 
than  once  she  paused  and  glanced  up  at  the  sentinel 


288          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

leaning  in  the  window  with  his  firelock  and  en 
treated  by  signs  his  forbearance,  which  he  seemed  to 
accord  qualified,  doubtful,  and  limited.  She  soon 
crossed  the  ditch,  the  glacis,  so  swift  she  was,  so 
sure  and  free  of  step,  and  paused  in  the  open  space 
beyond ;  then  Choo-qualee-qualoo,  too,  began  to 
advance.  Better  protected  was  the  Cherokee  girl, 
for  she  carried  in  her  hand,  and  now  and  again 
waved,  laughingly,  as  if  for  jest,  a  white  flag,  a 
length  of  fluttering  cambric  and  lace. 

"  By  the  howly  poker !  "  exclaimed  Corporal 
O'Flynn,  beneath  his  breath,  "  that  is  the  cravat 
of  a  man  of  quality,  —  some  British  officer  of  rank, 
belike." 

He  glanced  with  anxiety  at  Captain  Stuart,  whose 
every  faculty  seemed  concentrated  on  the  matter 
in  hand. 

"  The  Cherokees  know  that  a  white  flag  is  a  sign 
which  we  respect,  and  that  that  squaw  is  as  safe 
with  it  as  if  she  were  the  commandant  of  the  post. 
I  only  wish  Mrs.  MacLeod  could  have  a  like 
security."  This  aspiration  had  the  effect  of  fasten 
ing  O'Flynn's  eye  and  mind  to  the  sighting  of  his 
firelock  and  obliterating  his  speculations  concerning 
the  cravat  as  spoil  stripped  from  some  slain  officer 
of  rank. 

The  two  women  met  in  the  open  space,  with  the 
rifles  of  how  many  keen-sighted,  capricious  savages 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          289 

leveled  toward  the  spot  Demere  hardly  dared  to 
think,  as  he  watched  Odalie  in  a  sort  of  agony  of 
terror  that  he  might  have  felt  had  she  been  a  cher 
ished  sister.  They  stood  talking  for  a  time  in  the 
attitudes  and  the  manner  of  their  age,  which  was 
near  the  same,  swinging  a  little  apart  now  and  then, 
and  coming  together  with  suddenly  renewed  interest, 
and  again,  with  free,  casual  gestures,  and  graceful, 
unconstrained  pose,  they  both  laughed,  and  seemed 
to  take  a  congenial  pleasure  in  their  meeting.  They 
sat  down  for  a  time  on  a  bit  of  grass,  —  the  sward 
springing  anew,  since  it  was  so  little  trodden  in  these 
days,  and  with  a  richness  that  blood  might  have 
added  to  its  vigor.  Odalie  answered,  with  apparent 
unsuspiciousness,  certain  shrewd  questions  concern 
ing  the  armament  of  the  fort,  the  store  of  ammuni 
tion,  the  quantity  of  provisions,  the  manner  in  which 
Stuart  and  Demere  continued  to  bear  themselves, 
the  expectation  held  out  to  the  garrison  of  relief 
from  any  quarter,  —  questions  which  she  was  sure 
had  never  originated  in  the  brain  of  Choo-qualee- 
qualoo,  but  had  been  prompted  by  the  craft  of  Willi- 
nawaugh.  Odalie,  too,  had  been  carefully  prompted, 
and  Stuart's  anticipatory  answers  were  very  defi 
nitely  delivered,  as  of  her  own  volition.  Then 
they  passed  to  casual  chatting,  to  the  presentation 
of  a  bauble  which  Odalie  had  brought,  and  which 
seemed  to  touch  Choo-qualee-qualoo  to  the  point 


290          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

of  detailing  as  gossip  the  fact  that  the  attack  on 
the  white  people  had  been  intended  to  begin  at 
MacLeod  Station,  Willinawaugh  retaining  so  much 
resentment  against  the  Scotchman  to  whom  he  had 
granted  safe-conduct,  thinking  him  French,  when  he 
only  had  a  French  squaw  as  a  captive.  Savanukah, 
who  really  spoke  French,  had  made  capital  of  it, 
and  had  rendered  Willinawaugh's  pretensions  ridic 
ulous  in  the  eyes  of  the  nation,  for  Willinawaugh 
had  always  boasted,  to  Savanukah  at  least,  that  he 
understood  French,  although  it  was  beneath  his 
dignity  to  speak  it.  This  was  done  to  reduce 
Savanukah's  linguistic  achievements,  and  to  put  him 
in  the  position  of  a  mere  interpreter  or  such  people, 
when  Savanukah  was  a  great  warrior,  and  yet  could 
speak  many  languages,  like  the  famous  Baron  Des 
Johnnes.  And  what  was  there  now  at  MacLeod 
Station?  Nothing:  stockade,  houses,  fields,  all 
burnt !  Great  was  the  wrath  of  Willinawaugh  ! 

This  talk,  however,  was  less  to  the  taste  of  Choo- 
qualee-qualoo  than  questions  and  answers  concern 
ing  the  young  sentinel,  whom  the  Cherokees  had 
named  Sekakee,  "the  grasshopper,"  as  he  was  so 
loquacious;  she  often  paused  to  put  the  strings  of 
red  beads  into  her  mouth,  and  to  gaze  away  at  the 
glittering  reaches  of  the  river  with  large  liquid  eyes, 
sending  now  and  then  a  glance  at  the  window  where 
that  gruff  young  person  leaned  on  his  firelock. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          291 

Savanukah's  wife  said  Sekakee  must  be  hungry, 
Choo-qualee-qualoo  told  Odalie.  Was  Sekakee  hun 
gry?  She  would  bring  him  some  beans.  Savanukah 
said  they  would  all  be  hungry  soon.  And  the  fort 
would  be  the  Indians',  and  there  would  be  nobody 
in  the  land  but  the  Cherokees,  and  the  French  to 
carry  on  trade  with  them  —  was  Odalie  not  glad 
that  she  was  French  ?  —  for  there  had  been  great 
fighting  with  the  English  colonel's  men,  and  Willi- 
nawaugh  had  told  her  to  tell  the  captains  English 
both  that  fact :  much  blood  did  they  shed  of  their 
own  blood,  as  red  as  their  own  red  coats  ! 

Odalie  regarded  this  merely  as  an  empty  boast, 
the  triumphs  of  Montgomery's  campaign  rife  this 
day  in  the  garrison,  but  it  made  her  tremble  to 
listen.  Nevertheless,  she  had  the  nerve  to  walk  with 
Choo-qualee-qualoo  almost  to  the  water-side,  near 
the  shadowy  covert  of  the  dense  woods.  Nothing 
lurked  there  now,  —  no  flickering  feather,  no  fiercely 
gay  painted  face.  Her  confidence  seemed  the  ally 
of  the  Indians.  The  French  captive  of  the  Carolina 
Scotchman  would  be  to  them  like  a  spy  in  the  ene 
my's  camp  ! 

Perhaps  the  ordeal  made  the  greater  draughts  on 
the  courage  of  the  men  who  stood  in  the  shelter 
of  the  works  and  sighted  the  guns.  The  ten 
sion  grew  so  great  as  she  lingered  there  in  the 
shadows  that  cold  drops  stood  on  Demere's  face, 


292          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

and  the  hand  with  which  Stuart  held  the  firelock 
trembled. 

"  It's  a  woman  that  can't  get  enough  of  any 
thing/'  O'Flynn  muttered  to  himself.  "  I'll  have 
the  lockjaw  in  me  lungs,  for  I'm  gittin'  so  as  I 
can't  move  me  chist  to  catch  me  breath/' 

But  Odalie  turned  at  last,  and  still  signaling 
anxiously  to  the  sentry,  as  if  to  implore  silence  and 
forbearance,  she  crossed  the  open  space  with  her 
swift,  swinging  step,  climbed  the  red  clay  slope 
among  the  spiked  staves  of  the  fraises,  knelt 
down,  slipped  through  the  embrasure,  and  was  lifted 
to  her  feet  by  Demere,  while  the  gunners  stood  by 
looking  on,  and  smiling  and  ready  to  cry  over  her. 

Twice  afterward,  the  same  detail,  all  enjoined  to 
secrecy,  loaded  their  cannon,  and  stood  with  burn 
ing  matches  ready  to  fire  at  the  word,  while  the 
maneuver  was  repeated ;  an  interval  of  a  day  or  so 
was  allowed  to  elapse  on  each  occasion,  and  the 
hour  was  variously  chosen  —  when  it  was  possible 
for  the  French  woman  to  escape,  as  Choo-qualee- 
qualoo  was  given  to  understand.  Both  times 
Demere  protested,  although  he  had  accorded  the 
plan  his  countenance,  urging  the  capricious  temper 
of  the  Indians,  who  might  permit  Mrs.  MacLeod's 
exit  from  the  fort  one  day,  and  the  next,  for  a 
whim,  or  for  revenge  toward  her  husband,  who  had 
incurred  their  special  enmity  for  outwitting  them  on 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          293 

his  journey  hither,  shoot  her  through  the  heart  as 
she  stood  on  the  crest  of  the  counterscarp.  And 
of  what  avail  then  the  shotted  cannon,  the  firelocks 
in  the  loop-holes  ! 

"  You  know  they  are  for  our  own  protection,"  he 
argued.  "  Otherwise  we  could  not  endure  to  see 
the  risk.  The  utmost  we  can  do  for  her  is  to  pre 
vent  capture,  or  if  she  is  shot  to  take  quick  venge 
ance.  Loading  the  cannon  only  saves  our  nerves." 

"I  admit  it,"  declared  Stuart,  —  "a  species  of 
military  sal-volatile.  I  never  pretended  to  her  that 
she  was  protected  at  all,  or  safe  in  any  way,  —  she 
volunteered  for  a  duty  of  great  hazard." 

Demere,  although  appreciating  the  inestimable 
value  to  the  garrison  of  the  opportunity,  was  re 
lieved  after  the  third  occasion,  when  Alexander 
MacLeod,  by  an  accident,  discovered  the  fact  of 
these  dangerous  sorties  in  the  face  of  a  savage 
enemy,  no  less  capriciously  wicked  and  mischievous 
than  furious  and  blood-thirsty.  His  astonished 
rage  precluded  speech  for  a  moment,  and  the  two 
officers  found  an  opportunity  to  get  him  inside  the 
great  hall,  and  turning  the  key  Stuart  put  it  in  his 
pocket. 

"  Now,  before  you  expend  your  wrath  in  words 
that  we  may  all  regret,"  he  said,  sternly,  "  you  had 
best  understand  the  situation.  Your  wife  is  not  a 
woman  to  play  the  fool  under  any  circumstances, 


294          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

and  for  ourselves  we  are  not  in  heart  for  practical 
jokes.  Mr.  MacLeod,  we  have  here  more  than 
three  hundred  mouths  to  feed  daily,  nearly  three 
hundred  the  mouths  of  hearty,  hungry  men,  and  we 
have  exhausted  our  supply  of  corn  and  have  in  the 
smoke-house  barely  enough  salted  meat  to  sustain 
us  for  another  fortnight.  Then  we  shall  begin  to 
eat  the  few  horses.  We  are  so  closely  beleaguered 
that  it  has  proved  impossible  to  get  an  express 
through  that  cordon  of  savages  to  the  country  be 
yond.  To  communicate  with  Colonel  Montgomery 
as  early  as  practicable  is  the  only  hope  of  saving  our 
lives.  Mrs.  MacLeod's  sorties  from  the  fort  are  a 
part  of  our  scheme  —  the  essential  part.  You  may 
yet  come  to  think  the  dearest  boon  that  fate  could 
have  given  her  would  have  been  a  ball  through  her 
brain  as  she  stood  on  the  escarp  —  so  little  her 
chances  are  worth  !  " 

This  plain  disclosure  staggered  MacLeod.  He 
had  thought  the  place  amply  victualed.  A  rising 
doubt  of  the  officers'  capacity  to  manage  the  situ 
ation  showed  in  his  face. 

Stuart  interpreted  the  expression.  "  You  see,  — 
the  instant  disaster  is  suggested  you  can't  rely  on 
us,  —  even  you  !  And  if  that  spirit  were  abroad  in 
the  garrison  and  among  the  settlers,  we  should  have 
a  thousand  schemes  in  progress,  manipulated  by 
people  not  so  experienced  as  we,  to  save  themselves 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          295 

first  and — perhaps  the  others.  The  ammunition 
might  be  traded  to  the  Cherokees  for  a  promise  of 
individual  security.  The  gates  might  be  opened 
and  the  garrison  delivered  into  the  enemy's  hands  by 
two  or  three  as  the  price  of  their  own  lives.  Such 
a  panic  or  mutiny  might  arise  as  would  render  a 
defense  of  the  place  impracticable,  and  the  fort  be 
taken  by  storm  and  all  put  to  the  sword,  or  death 
by  torture.  We  are  keeping  our  secret  as  well  as 
we  can,  hoping  for  relief  from  Montgomery,  and 
scheming  to  receive  assurance  of  it.  We  asked 
Mrs.  MacLeod's  help,  and  she  gave  it ! " 

The  logic  of  this  appeal  left  MacLeod  no  reply. 
"  How  could  you ! "  he  only  exclaimed,  glancing 
reproachfully  at  his  wife. 

"That  is  what  I  have  always  said,"  cried  Stuart, 
gayly,  perceiving  that  the  crisis  was  overpast. 
"How  could  she!" 

There  was  no  more  that  Odalie  could  do,  and 
that  fact  partially  reconciled  the  shuddering  Mac 
Leod  to  the  past,  although  he  felt  he  could  hardly 
face  the  ghastly  front  of  the  future.  And  he  drew 
back  wincingly  from  the  unfolding  plans.  As  for 
Odalie,  the  next  day  she  spent  in  her  room,  the  door 
barred,  her  hair  tossed  out  of  its  wonted  perfection 
of  array,  her  dress  disordered,  her  face  and  eyes 
swollen  with  weeping,  and  when  she  heard  the  great 
guns  of  the  fort  begin  to  send  forth  their  thunder, 


296          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

and  the  heavy  shot  crashing  among  the  boughs  of 
the  forest  beyond,  she  fell  upon  her  knees,  then 
rose,  wild  and  agitated,  springing  to  the  door,  yet 
no  sooner  letting  down  the  bar  than  again  re 
placing  it,  to  fall  anew  upon  her  knees  and  rise 
once  more,  too  distraught  for  the  framing  of  a 
prayer. 

Yet  at  this  same  moment  Mrs.  MacLeod,  in  her 
familiar  gray  serge  gown  and  red  calash,  was  seen, 
calm  and  decorous,  walking  slowly  across  the  parade 
in  the  direction  of  the  great  hall  of  the  northwest 
bastion.  The  soldiers  who  met  her  doffed  their 
hats  with  looks  of  deep  respect.  Now  and  again 
she  bowed  to  a  settler  with  her  pretty,  stately  grace, 
—  somewhat  too  pronounced  an  elegance  for  the 
wife  of  so  poor  a  man  as  MacLeod,  it  was  thought, 
he  being  of  less  ornamental  clay.  She  hesitated  at 
the  door  of  the  block-house,  with  a  little  air  of  diffi 
dence,  as  might  befit  a  lady  breaking  in  upon  the 
time  of  men  presumed  to  be  officially  busy.  The 
door  opened,  and  with  a  bow  of  mingled  dignity 
and  deprecation  she  entered,  and  as  the  door  closed, 
Hamish  dropped  the  imitation  of  her  manner,  and 
bounded  into  the  middle  of  the  room  with  a  great 
gush  of  boyish  laughter,  holding  out  both  arms  and 
crying,  "  Don't  I  look  enticing !  To  see  the  fellows 
salaaming  to  the  very  ground  as  I  came  across  the 
parade  !  —  what  are  you  doing  to  my  frock,  Captain 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          297 

Demere  ?  "  he  broke  off,  suddenly.  "  It's  just 
right.  Odalie  fixed  it  herself." 

"  Don't  scuffle  up  these  frills  so/'  Captain 
Demere  objected.  "  Mrs.  MacLeod  is  wont  to 
wear  her  frock  precisely." 

"  Did  O'Flynn  mistake  you  for  Mrs.  MacLeod?" 
asked  Stuart,  relishing  the  situation  despite  his 
anxiety. 

"  I  wish  you  could  have  seen  the  way  he  drew 
down  that  red  Irish  mouth  of  his,"  said  Hamish, 
with  a  guffaw,  "  looking  so  genteel  and  pious  !  " 

"  I  think  it  passes,"  said  Demere,  who  was  not 
optimistic ;  but  now  he  too  was  smiling  a  little. 

"  It  passes  !  "  cried  Stuart,  triumphantly. 

For  the  height  of  Odalie  and  Hamish  was  exactly 
the  same  —  five  feet  eight  inches.  Hamish.  destined 
to  attain  upward  of  six  feet,  had  not  yet  all  his  growth. 
The  full  pleated  skirt  with  the  upper  portion  drawn 
up  at  the  hips,  and  the  cape  about  the  shoulders, 
obviated  the  difference  between  Odalie's  delicately 
rounded  slenderness  and  Hamish's  lank  angularity. 
The  cape  of  the  calash,  too,  was  thrown  around  the 
throat  and  about  the  chin  and  mouth,  and  as  she 
was  wont  to  hold  her  head  down  and  look  up  at 
you  from  out  the  dusky  red  tunnel  of  its  depths  the 
difference  in  the  complexion  and  the  expression  of 
the  hazel  eyes  of  each  was  hardly  to  be  noticed  in 
passing.  To  speak  would  have  been  fatal,  but 


298          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

Hamish  had  been  charged  not  to  speak.  His 
chestnut  curls,  brushed  into  a  glossy  similarity, 
crept  out  and  lay  on  the  folds  of  the  red  cape  of 
the  calash  with  a  verisimilitude  that  seemed  almost 
profane. 

Admonished  by  Stuart  to  have  heed  of  long  steps, 
and  the  dashing  swing  of  his  habitual  gait,  he  was 
leaning  on  Sandy's  arm,  as  they  went  out,  in  an 
imitation  of  Odalie's  graceful  manner.  The  young 
sentry,  Daniel  Eske,  —  no  one  else  was  permitted 
at  these  times  to  stand  guard  in  this  block-house 
tower,  —  noted  this,  with  the  usual  maneuver  of 
Mrs.  MacLeod's  escape  through  the  embrasure, 
and  he  was  filled  with  ire.  He  had  fancied  that  her 
husband  did  not  know  of  this  recklessness,  as  he 
was  half  inclined  to  think  it,  although  evidently  some 
fine-spun  scheme  of  Captain  Stuart's ;  it  seemed 
especially  futile  this  evening,  so  near  sunset,  and 
the  odd  circumstance  of  the  cannonade  having 
sufficed  to  clear  every  Indian  out  of  the  forest  and 
the  range  of  the  guns.  Mrs.  MacLeod  could  not 
speak  to  Choo-qualee-qualoo  now,  he  argued  within 
himself;  the  girl  would  not  be  there  in  the  face  of 
this  hot  fire  !  How  rapidly  Mrs.  MacLeod  walked  ; 
only  once  she  paused  and  glanced  about  her  as  if 
looking  for  the  Cherokee  girl,  —  what  folly!  —  for 
with  a  flash  of  fire  and  a  puff  of  white  smoke,  and  a 
great  sweeping  curve  too  swift  to  follow  with  the 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          299 

eye,  each  successive  ball  flew  from  the  cannon's 
mouth  over  her  head  and  into  the  woods  beyond. 

From  the  opposite  bank  of  the  river  an  Indian, 
crouched  in  the  cleft  of  a  rock,  yet  consciously  out 
of  the  range,  watched  her  progress  for  one  moment, 
then  suddenly  set  off  at  a  swift  pace,  doubtless  to 
fetch  the  young  squaw,  so  that  when  the  firing 
should  cease  she  could  ascertain  from  the  French 
woman  what  the  unusual  demonstration  of  the 
cannonade  might  signify. 

It  was  only  for  a  moment  that  the  sentry's  atten 
tion  was  thus  diverted,  but  when  he  looked  again  the 
gray  gown,  the  red  calash,  the  swiftly  moving  figure 
had  disappeared.  The  gunners  had  been  ordered  to 
cease  firing,  and  the  usual  commotion  of  sponging 
out  the  bore,  and  reloading  the  guns,  and  replacing 
all  the  appliances  of  their  service,  was  interrupted 
now  and  again  by  the  men  looking  anxiously  through 
the  embrasure  for  Mrs.  MacLeod's  return.  They 
presently  called  up  an  inquiry  to  the  sentinel  in  the 
tower,  presuming  upon  the  utility  of  the  secret  serv 
ice  to  excuse  this  breach  of  discipline.  "  Why," 
said  the  soldier,  "  I  took  my  eye  off  her  for  one 
minute  and  she  disappeared." 

"  You  mean  you  shut  your  eyes  for  five  minutes," 
said  Corporal  O'Flynn,  gruffly,  having  just  entered. 
"  Captain  Stuart  told  me  that  he  himself  opened  the 
little  gate  and  let  her  in  by  the  sally-port.  And 


3oo          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

there  she  is  now,  all  dressed  out  fresh  again,  walking 
with  her  husband  on  the  parade  under  the  trees. 
An*  yonder  is  the  Injun  colleen,  —  got  here  too 
late !  Answer  her,  man,  according  to  your  orders." 

Against  his  will  the  young  sentinel  leaned  out  of 
the  window  with  a  made-to-order  smile,  and  as 
Choo-qualee-qualoo  waved  her  hand  and  pointed  to 
the  empty  path  along  which  Odalie  was  wont  to 
come,  he  intimated  by  signs  that  she  had  waited 
but  was  obliged  to  return  to  the  fort  and  was  now 
within,  and  he  pointed  down  to  the  gorge  of  the 
bastion.  To-morrow  when  there  should  be  an 
eastern  sky  she  would  come  out,  and  Choo-qualee- 
qualoo  signed  that  she  would  meet  her.  Then  she 
lingered,  waving  her  hand  now  and  again  on  her 
own  account,  and  he  dutifully  flourished  his  hat. 

"  Gosh,"  he  exclaimed,  "  if  treachery  sticks  in  the 
gizzard  like  this  pretense  there  is  no  use  in  cord  or 
shot,  —  the  fellow  does  for  himself!" 

He  was  glad  when  the  lingering  twilight  slipped 
down  at  last  and  put  an  end  to  the  long-range  flirta 
tion,  for  however  alert  an  interest  he  might  have 
developed,  were  it  voluntary,  its  utility  as  a  military 
maneuver  blunted  its  zest.  Choo-qualee-qualoo 
had  sped  away  to  her  home  up  the  river ;  the  stars 
were  in  the  sky,  and  in  broken  glimmers  reflected 
in  the  ripples  of  the  current.  The  head-men  among 
the  cordon,  drawn  around  Fort  Loudon,  sat  in 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          301 

circles  and  discussed  the  possible  reasons  of  the 
sudden  furious  cannonade,  and  the  others  of  minor 
tribal  importance  listened  and  adjusted  their  own 
theories  to  the  views  advanced ;  the  only  stragglers 
were  the  spies  whom  the  cannonade  had  driven  from 
the  woods  that  afternoon,  now  venturing  back  into 
the  neighborhood,  looking  at  the  lights  of  the  fort, 
hearing  often  hilarious  voices  full  of  the  triumph  of 
Montgomery's  foray,  and  sometimes  rinding  on  the 
ground  the  spent  balls  of  the  cannonade. 

It  had  so  cleared  the  nearer  spaces  that  it  had 
enabled  Hamish,  in  a  guise  become  familiar  to 
them,  to  gain  the  little  thicket  where  Choo-qualee- 
qualoo  and  Odalie  were  wont  to  conclude  their  talks. 
Close  by  was  the  mouth  of  the  cavernous  passage  that 
led  to  MacLeod's  Station,  which  no  Indians  knew 
the  white  people  had  discovered.  With  a  sudden 
plunge  the  boy  was  lost  to  sight  in  its  labyrinthine 
darkness,  and  when  Hamish  MacLeod  emerged  at 
the  further  end  five  miles  away,  in  his  own  garb, 
which  he  had  worn  beneath  the  prim  feminine  attire, 
—  this  he  had  carefully  rolled  into  a  bundle  and 
stowed  in  a  cleft  in  the  rocks  of  the  underground 
passage,  —  he  issued  into  a  night  as  sweet,  as  lonely, 
and  as  still,  in  that  vast  woodland,  as  if  there  were  no 
wars  or  rumors  of  wars  in  all  the  earth.  But,  alas ! 
for  the  sight  of  Odalie's  home  that  she  had  loved 
and  made  so  happy,  and  where  he  had  been  as  cher- 


JO2          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

ished  as  Fifine  herself,  —  all  grim,  charred  ashes ; 
and  poor  Dill's  cabin !  —  he  knew  by  this  time 
that  Dill  was  dead,  very  dead,  or  he  would  have 
come  back  to  them.  The  fields,  too,  that  they  had 
sown,  and  that  none  would  reap,  trampled  and 
torn,  and  singed  and  burnt!  Hamish  gave  but  one 
sigh,  bursting  from  an  overcharged  heart ;  then  he 
was  away  at  full  speed  in  the  darkness  that  was 
good  to  him,  and  the  only  friend  he  had  in  the 
world  with  the  power  to  help  him  and  his. 

Captain  Demere  that  night  was  more  truly  cheer 
ful  than  he  had  been  for  a  long  time,  despite  his 
usual  port  of  serene,  although  somewhat  austere, 
dignity. 

"  The  boy  has  all  the  homing  qualities  you 
desired  in  an  express,"  he  said  to  Stuart.  "  He 
will  come  back  to  his  brother's  family  as  certainly 
as  a  man  with  wife  and  children,  and  yet  in  quitting 
them  he  leaves  no  duty  to  devolve  on  others." 

"  Moreover,"  said  Stuart,  "  we  have  the  satisfac 
tion  of  knowing  that  he  safely  reached  the  mouth 
of  the  underground  passage  without  detection.  He 
could  not  have  found  the  place  in  a  dark  night. 
In  the  moonlight  he  would  have  been  seen,  and 
even  if  we  had  protected  his  entrance  by  a  cannon 
ade,  and  cleared  the  woods,  his  exit  at  the  other  end 
of  the  passage  would  have  been  intercepted.  Dis 
guised  as  Mrs.  MacLeod,  seeking  to  meet  Choo- 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London         303 

qualee-qualoo  in  bold  daylight,  he  passed  without  a 
suspicion  on  the  part  of  the  Indians.  And  we  know 
that  the  exit  of  the  passage  at  MacLeod  Station  is 
fully  three  miles  in  the  rear  of  the  Indian  line.  I 
feel  sure  that  the  other  two  expresses  never  got  be 
yond  the  Indian  line.  This  is  the  best  chance  we 
have  had." 

"  And  a  very  good  chance,"  said  Demere. 

Stuart  could  but  laugh  a  little,  remembering  that 
Demere  had  thought  the  plan  impracticable,  and, 
although  there  was  no  other  opportunity  possible, 
had  protested  against  it  on  the  point  of  danger 
involved  to  Mrs.  MacLeod.  Stuart,  himself,  had 
quaked  on  this  score,  and  had  seized  on  this  ingen 
ious  device  only  as  a  last  resort. 

"  Mrs.  MacLeod  is  fine  timber  for  a  forlorn 
hope,"  he  said  reflectively. 

The  matter  had  been  so  sedulously  guarded  from 
the  knowledge  of  the  garrison,  save  such  share  as 
was  of  necessity  divulged  to  the  men  who  fired  the 
guns,  the  young  sentinel,  and  Corporal  O'Flynn, — 
and  even  they  were  not  aware  that  there  had  been 
a  sortie  of  any  other  person  than  Mrs.  MacLeod, 
—  that  Hamish's  absence  passed  unnoticed  for 
several  days,  and  when  it  was  announced  that  he 
had  been  smuggled  out  of  the  fort,  charged  with 
dispatches  to  Colonel  Montgomery,  no  one  dreamed 
of  identifying  him  with  the  apparition  in  the  gray 


304          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

gown  whom  the  gunners  had  seen  to  issue  forth  and 
return  no  more.  Even  Corporal  O'Flynn  accepted 
the  statement,  without  suspicion,  that  Captain  Stuart 
had  let  Mrs.  MacLeod  in  at  the  sally-port.  These 
excursions,  he  imagined,  were  to  secure  information 
from  Choo-qualee-qualoo. 

The  announcement  that  an  express  was  now  on 
the  way  was  made  to  encourage  the  men,  for  the 
daily  ration  had  dwindled  to  a  most  meager  portion, 
and  complaints  were  rife  on  every  hand  both  among 
the  soldiery  and  the  families  of  the  settlers.  A 
wild,  startled  look  appeared  in  many  eyes,  as  if 
some  ghastly  possibility  had  come  within  the  range 
of  vision,  undreamed-of  before.  The  facts,  however, 
that  the  commandant  was  able  to  still  maintain  a 
connection  beyond  the  line  of  blockading  Cherokees, 
that  Hamish  had  been  gone  for  more  than  a  week, 
that  decisive  developments  of  some  sort  must 
shortly  ensue,  that  the  officers  themselves  kept  a 
cheerful  countenance,  served  to  stimulate  an  effort 
to  sustain  the  suspense  and  the  gnawing  privation. 
Continual  exertions  were  made  in  this  direction. 

"  Try  to  keep  up  the  spirits  of  the  men,"  said 
Demere  to  O'Flynn  one  day. 

"  I  do,  sor,"  returned  O'Flynn,  his  cheek  a  trifle 
pale  and  sunken.  "  I  offer  meself  to  'm  as  an  ex 
ample.  I  says  to  the  guard  only  to-day,  sor,  says 
I,  — c  Now  in  affliction  ye  see  the  difference  betune 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          305 

a  person  of  quality,  and  a  common  spalpeen/  An' 
they  wants  to  know  who  is  this  person  of  quality, 
sor.  And  I  names  meself,  sor,  being  descended 
from  kings  of  Oirland.  An',  would  ye  belave  me, 
sor,  not  one  of  them  bog-trotting  teagues  but  what 
was  kings  of  Oirland,  too,  sor." 

Corporal  O'Flynn  might  have  thought  his  supe 
rior  officer  needed  cheering  too,  for  the  twinkle 
in  his  eye  had  lost  none  of  its  alluring  Celtic 
quality. 

The  distressing  element  of  internecine  strife  and 
bickerings  was  presently  added  to  the  difficulties  of 
the  officers,  who  evidently  faced  a  situation  grievous 
enough  in  itself  without  these  auxiliary  troubles. 
Certain  turbulent  spirits  opined  loudly  that  they, 
the  humbler  people,  had  advantage  taken  of  them, 
—  that  the  officers'  mess  was  served  in  a  profusion 
never  abated,  while  the  rest  starved.  Captain  Stuart 
and  Captain  Demere  would  not  notice  this  report, 
but  the  junior  officers  were  vehement  in  their  prot 
estations  that  they  and  their  superiors  had  had  from 
the  beginning  of  the  scarcity  the  identical  rations 
served  out  to  the  others,  and  that  their  gluttony  had 
not  reduced  the  general  supply.  The  quartermaster- 
sergeant  confirmed  this,  yet  who  believed  him,  as 
Mrs.  Halsing  said,  for  he  carried  the  keys  and  could 
favor  whom  he  would.  That  he  did  not  favor 
himself  was  obvious  from  the  fact  that  his  once 


306          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

red  face  had  grown  an  ashen  gray,  and  the  cheeks 
hung  in  visible  cords  and  ligaments  under  the  thrice- 
folded  skin,  the  flesh  between  having  gradually  van 
ished.  The  African  cook  felt  his  honor  so  touched 
by  this  aspersion  on  his  master's  methods  that  he 
carried  his  kettles  and  pans  out  into  the  center  of 
the  parade  one  day  and  there,  in  insubordinate  dis 
regard  of  orders,  cooked  in  public  the  scanty  mate 
rials  of  the  officers'  dinner.  And  having  thus 
expressed  his  indignant  rage  he  sat  down  on  the 
ground  among  his  kettles  and  pans  and  wept  aloud 
in  a  long  lugubrious  howl,  thus  giving  vent  to  his 
grief,  and  requiring  the  kind  offices  of  every  friend 
he  had  in  the  fort  to  pacify  him  and  induce  him  to 
remove  himself,  his  pans,  and  his  kettles  from  this 
unseemly  conspicuousness. 

At  the  height  of  the  trouble,  when  Stuart  and  De- 
mere,  themselves  anxious  and  nervous,  and  greatly 
reduced  by  the  poor  quality  and  scarcity  of  food,  sat 
together  and  speculated  on  the  problem  of  Mont 
gomery's  silence,  and  the  continued  absence  of  the 
express,  and  wondered  how  long  this  state  of  things 
could  be  maintained,  yearning  for,  yet  fearing  the 
end,  —  talking  as  they  dared  not  talk  to  any  human 
being  but  each  to  the  other,  —  Ensign  Whitson  burst 
into  the  room  with  an  excited  face  and  the  news  that 
there  had  been  a  fight  over  in  the  northeast  bastion 
at  the  further  side  of  the  terrepleine. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          307 

Captain  Stuart  rose,  bracing  his  nerves  for  the 
endurance  of  still  more. 

"  A  food  riot  ?  I  have  expected  it.  Have  they 
broken  into  the  smoke-house  ?  " 

Whitson  looked  wild  for  one  moment.  "  Oh, 
no,  sir,  —  not  that !  —  not  that !  Two  Irishmen  at 
fisticuffs,  —  about  the  Battle  of  the  Boyne  !  —  Cor 
poral  O'Flynn  and  a  settler." 

For  the  first  time  in  a  week  Stuart  laughed  with 
genuine  hilarity.  "  Mighty  well !  "  he  exclaimed. 
"  Let  us  settle  the  important  questions  between  the 
Irish  Catholics  and  the  Irish  Protestants  before  we 
go  a  step  further  !  " 

But  Demere  was  writhing  under  the  realization 
of  a  relaxed  discipline,  although  when  O'Flynn 
presented  himself  in  response  to  summons  he  was 
so  crest-fallen  and  woe-begone  and  reduced,  that 
Demere  had  not  the  heart  to  take  summary  meas 
ures  with  the  half-famished  boxer. 

"  O'Flynn/'  he  said,  "do  you  deem  this  a  fitting 
time  to  set  the  example  of  broils  between  the  settlers 
and  soldiers  ?  Truly,  I  think  we  need  but  this  to 
precipitate  our  ruin." 

Stuart  hastily  checked  the  effect  of  this  impru 
dent  phrase  by  breaking  in  upon  a  statement  of 
Corporal  O'Flynn's,  which  seemed  to  represent  his 
right  arm  as  in  some  sort  a  free  agent,  mechanically 
impelled  through  the  air,  the  hand  in  a  clinched 


308          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

posture,  in  disastrous  juxtaposition  with  the  skulls 
of  other  people,  and  that  he  was  not  thinking,  and 
would  not  have  had  it  happen  for  nothing,  and  — 

"  But  is  the  man  an  Irishman  ? "  asked  Stuart. 
"  He  has  no  brogue.'* 

"  Faith,  sor,"  said  the  repentant  O'Flynn,  glad 
of  the  diversion,  "  he  hits  loike  an  Oirishman, —  I 
don't  think  he  is  an  impostor.  My  nose  feels 
rather  limber." 

O'Flynn  having  been  of  great  service  in  the  crisis, 
they  were  both  glad  to  pass  over  his  breach  of  disci 
pline  as  lightly  as  they  might ;  and  he  doubtless 
reaped  the  benefit  of  their  relief  that  the  matter  was 
less  serious  than  they  had  feared. 

The  next  day,  however,  the  expected  happened. 
The  unruly  element,  partly  of  soldiers  with  a  few 
of  the  settlers,  broke  into  the  smoke-house  and  dis 
covered  there  what  the  commandant  was  sedulously 
trying  to  conceal,  —  nothing  ! 

It  stunned  them  for  the  moment.  It  tamed 
them.  The  more  prudential  souls  began  now  to  fear 
the  attitude  of  the  officers,  to  turn  to  them,  to  rely 
again  upon  their  experience  and  capacity. 

When  the  two  captains  came  upon  the  scene, 
Demere  wearing  the  affronted,  averse,  dangerous 
aspect  which  he  always  bore  upon  any  breach  of 
discipline,  and  Stuart  his  usual  cool,  off-hand  look 
as  if  the  matter  did  not  greatly  concern  him,  they 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          309 

listened  in  silence  to  the  clamor  of  explanations  and 
expostulations,  of  criminations  and  recriminations 
which  greeted  them.  Only  a  single  sentence  was 
spoken  by  either  of  them, — a  terse  low-toned  order. 
Upon  the  word,  Corporal  O'Flynn  with  a  squad  of 
soldiers  rushed  briskly  into  the  crowd,  and  in  less 
than  two  minutes  the  rioters  were  in  irons. 

"Jedburgh  justice!"  said  Stuart  aside  to  Demere, 
as  they  took  their  way  back  across  the  parade. 
"  Hang  'em  first,  and  try  'em  afterward." 

The  bystanders  might  argue  little  from  Demere's 
reticent  soldierly  dignity,  but  Stuart's  ringing  laugh, 
as  he  spoke  aside  to  his  brother  officer,  his  cheer 
ful,  buoyant,  composed  mien,  restored  confidence  as 
naught  less  than  the  sound  of  Montgomery's  bugles 
outside  the  works  might  have  done.  Doubtless  he 
was  apprised  of  early  relief.  Surely  he  did  not  look 
like  a  man  who  expected  to  live  on  horse-flesh  in 
the  midst  of  a  mutinous  garrison,  with  the  wild 
savages  outside,  and  within  that  terrible  strain  upon 
the  courage,  —  the  contemplation  of  the  sufferings 
of  non-combatants,  the  women  and  children,  who 
had  entered  into  no  covenant  and  received  no  com 
pensation  to  endure  the  varying  chances  of  war. 

Yet  this  prospect  seemed  close  upon  him  before 
that  day  was  done.  The  orderly  routine  had  slipped 
again  into  its  grooves.  The  hungry  men,  brisk, 
spruce,  were  going  about  their  various  military 


jio          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

duties  with  an  alacrity  incongruous  with  their  cadav 
erous  aspect.  The  sentinels  were  posted  as  usual, 
and  Captain  Stuart,  repairing  according  to  his  wont 
to  a  post  of  observation  in  the  block-house  tower 
of  the  northwest  bastion,  turned  his  glass  upon  the 
country  beyond,  lowered  it  suddenly,  looking  keenly 
at  the  lens,  as  if  he  could  not  believe  his  eyes,  and 
again  lifted  it.  There  was  no  mistake.  On  the 
opposite  side  of  the  river,  looking  like  some  gigan 
tic  monkey  capering  along  on  a  pair  of  thin  bare 
legs,  was  a  stalwart  Indian,  arrayed  for  the  upper 
part  of  his  person  in  a  fine  scarlet  coat,  richly  laced, 
evidently  the  spoil  from  some  British  officer  of  high 
rank.  Perhaps  no  apparition  so  grotesque  ever  sent 
a  chill  to  so  stout  a  heart.  Stuart  was  no  prophet, 
quotha.  But  he  could  see  the  worst  when  it  came 
and  stared  him  in  the  eyes. 


CHAPTER   XI 

STUART  and  Demere  argued  the  matter  in 
their  secret  conclaves.  Both  admitted  that 
although  Montgomery  had  had  only  four  or 
five  men  killed,  among  them  no  officers,  on  his  first 
expedition,  he  might  have  again  taken  the  field,  and 
this  was  as  they  hoped.  He  was  advancing ;  he 
must  be  near.  The  trophy  of  the  fine  red  coat 
meant  probably  that  he  had  lost  an  officer  of  value ; 
—  perhaps  meant  less  —  the  personal  disaster  of 
the  capture  of  baggage  or  the  necessity  of  throwing 
it  away.  Montgomery  had  advanced,  —  that  was 
indubitable.  Nevertheless,  —  and  perhaps  it  was 
the  lowering  influence  of  the  scanty  fare  on  which 
they  had  so  long  subsisted,  —  both  officers  dreaded 
the  suspense  less  than  the  coming  disclosure. 

Stuart  felt  all  his  nerves  grow  tense  late  one  day 
in  the  red  July  sunset,  when  there  emerged  from  the 
copse  of  pawpaw  bushes,  close  to  the  river  where 
Odalie  had  once  been  wont  to  repair  to  talk  to  Choo- 
qualee-qualoo,  a  tall  form,  arrayed  in  a  gray  gown,  a 
trifle  ill-adjusted,  with  a  big  red  calash  drawn  forward 
on  the  head,  that  walked  at  a  somewhat  slashing 

3"    • 


312          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

gait  across  the  open  space  toward  the  glacis.  He 
thanked  heaven  that  Mrs.  MacLeod  was  ill  in  her 
bed,  although  he  had  some  twenty  minutes  ago  been 
sending  to  her  through  her  husband  expressions  of 
polite  and  heartfelt  regret  and  sympathy. 

"  Why,  I  hardly  thought  Mrs.  MacLeod  was 
well  enough  to  take  a  walk/'  he  observed  to  the 
sentry.  Daniel  Eske  naturally  supposed  that  Mrs. 
MacLeod  had  slipped  out  before  he  had  gone  on 
duty,  having  just  been  sent  to  the  relief  of  the 
previous  sentinel.  Stuart  went  down  to  the  em 
brasure,  assisted  the  supposed  lady  to  her  feet  as 
she  slipped  through,  and  ceremoniously  offered  her 
his  arm  as  she  was  about  to  plunge  down  the  steep 
interior  slope  in  a  very  boyish  fashion.  They 
found  Demere  in  the  great  hall,  and  both  officers 
read  the  brief  official  dispatch  with  countenances 
of  dismay. 

"  This  says  that  you  can  explain  the  details," 
said  Demere,  with  dry  lips  and  brightly  gleaming 
eyes. 

"  Oh,  yes,"  said  Hamish.  "All  the  time  that  I 
was  at  Fort  Prince  George  the  commandant  was 
writing  letters  to  Governor  Bull  —  for  Lyttleton 
has  been  appointed  to  Jamaica  —  and  hustling  off 
his  expresses  to  South  Carolina.  He  sent  three, 
and  said  if  he  heard  from  none  by  return  he  would 
send  more." 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          313 

For  this  was  the  appalling  fact  that  had  fallen  like 
a  thunderbolt,  —  Colonel  Montgomery  had  with  his 
command  quitted  the  country  and  sailed  for  New 
York.  His  orders  were  to  strike  a  sudden  blow  for 
the  relief  of  Carolina  and  return  to  head-quarters  at 
Albany  at  the  earliest  possible  moment.  No  word  of 
the  grievous  straits  of  the  garrison  of  Fort  Loudon 
had  reached  him.  He  had,  indeed,  advanced  from 
Fort  Prince  George,  which  he  had  made  the  base  of 
his  aggressive  operations  against  the  Cherokees,  but 
not  for  the  relief  of  Fort  Loudon,  for  neither  he  nor 
the  commandant  of  Fort  Prince  George  knew  that 
that  post  was  in  danger.  The  overtures  to  the 
Cherokees  for  peace  having  proved  fruitless,  Colonel 
Montgomery  had  sought  to  make  peace  by  force. 
In  pursuance  of  this  further  effort  he  pushed 
forward  with  great  energy  and  spirit,  but  encoun 
tered  throughout  disasters  so  serious  as  to  cripple 
his  enterprise,  culminating  finally  in  a  result  equiva 
lent  to  a  repulse.  The  Indians,  in  the  skulking 
methods  peculiar  to  their  warfare,  harassed  his 
march,  hanging  upon  the  flanks  of  the  main  body, 
and  firing  in  detail  from  behind  trees  and  rocks, 
from  the  depths  of  ravines  and  the  summits  of  hills 
of  the  broken,  rugged  wilderness.  Never  did  they 
present  any  front  that  it  was  possible  to  charge  and 
turn.  The  advance-guard,  approaching  through 
a  narrow  vallev,  the  town  of  Etchoee,  which  the 


314          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

Indians  had  abandoned,  fell  into  an  ambuscade  of 
considerable  strength,  and  there  he  lost  Captain 
Morrison  of  the  Rangers,  and  ten  or  twelve  men 
who  fell  at  the  first  fire.  The  vanguard,  dis 
couraged,  began  to  give  way,  when  the  light  infan 
try  and  grenadiers  were  detached  for  its  support. 
They  succeeded  in  locating  the  chief  strength  of  the 
Cherokees  sufficiently  to  drive  the  savages  back, 
despite  the  disastrous  results  of  their  scattered  fire. 
The  main  body,  coming  up,  encamped  near  Etchoee, 
on  a  level  space  which  proved,  however,  to  be  com 
manded  by  eminences  in  the  vicinity.  Thence  the 
Indians  poured  destructive  volleys  into  the  British 
ranks,  and  only  after  repeated  charges  the  soldiers 
succeeded  in  dislodging  them.  Impetuously  attacked 
on  the  flank,  the  Cherokees  suffered  severely  at  the 
hands  of  the  Royal  Scots  before  being  able  to  get 
out  of  their  reach.  The  terrible  aspect  of  the  painted 
savages,  and  their  nerve-thrilling  whoops  with  which 
the  woods  resounded,  failed  also  to  affect  the  courage 
of  the  wild  Highlanders,  and  all  the  troops  fought 
with  great  ardor.  But  Colonel  Montgomery  deemed 
it  impossible  to  penetrate  further  through  the  wilder 
ness,  hampered  as  he  was  by  seventy  wounded  men 
whom  he  could  not  leave  to  the  mercies  of  so  sav 
age  an  enemy,  by  the  loss  of  many  horses,  by  the 
necessity  —  which  was  yet  almost  an  impossibility 
—  of  carrying  a  train  of  cattle  and  other  provisions 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          315 

with  him  in  so  rugged,  trackless,  and  heavily  wooded 
a  region,  and  relinquished  the  attempt,  thinking  the 
terrible  losses  which  the  Indians  had  sustained  would 
prove  sufficient  punishment  and  dispose  them  to 
peace.  He  was  even  compelled  to  sacrifice  a  con 
siderable  portion  of  his  stores,  throwing  away  bags 
of  flour  in  large  numbers  in  order  to  effect  the 
release  of  the  packhorses  to  transport  his  wounded. 
His  dead  he  sunk  heavily  weighted  into  the  rivers, 
that  the  bodies  might  not  be  dragged  from  their 
graves  and  scalped  by  the  Indians.  His  return 
march  of  sixty  miles  to  Fort  Prince  George,  which 
was  accomplished  with  great  regularity,  was  marked 
by  the  same  incidents  that  had  characterized  his 
advance,  —  the  nettling  fire  of  the  masked  enemy, 
the  futile  response,  and  the  constant  loss  of  men 
and  horses. 

And  so  he  was  gone,  and  all  the  hopes  that  had 
clustered  about  his  advance  had  gone  with  him  ! 
To  Fort  Loudon  remained  only  two  remote 
chances,  —  that  Governor  Bull  of  South  Carolina 
might  be  able  to  act  on  the  belated  information  and 
send  out  an  expedition  of  relief;  yet  this  was  to 
the  last  degree  improbable,  since  the  province,  after 
its  first  expensive  expedition  against  the  Cherokees, 
had  been  compelled  to  appeal  for  its  own  protection 
to  the  British  commander-in-chief,  the  militia  being 
practically  disabled  by  the  ravages  of  smallpox.  But 


316          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

even  at  the  best  could  such  an  expedition  reach 
them  in  time  ?  The  other  possibility  of  suc 
cor  lay  in  Virginia,  and  it  was  obvious  wisdom  to 
embrace  both  chances.  Stuart  knew  that  Demere's 
quill,  scraping  over  the  paper,  was  fashioning  the 
appeal  to  the  royal  governor  of  that  province,  even 
while  Hamish  was  still  speaking,  and  he,  himself, 
wrote  supplemental  letters  to  other  persons  of  note, 
that  the  news  of  their  desolation,  failing  to  carry  in 
one  direction,  might  be  spread  in  another. 

"  Now,  Hamish,"  he  said,  smiling  behind  the 
candle  as  he  held  the  wax  in  it  for  the  seal,  "  can 
you  do  as  much  again  ?  " 

"Where?  When?"  demanded  Hamish,  in 
surprise. 

"  To  Virginia.     To-night." 

Hamish's  eyes  stretched  very  wide.  "  You  won't 
wait  for  Governor  Bull  ?  The  officers  at  Fort 
Prince  George  said  they  would  lay  their  lives  that 
Governor  Bull  would  respond." 

"  We  must  try  Virginia,  too.  My  boy,  we  are 
starving.  To-morrow  we  begin  to  eat  the  horses, 
—  then  there  may  be  a  dog  or  two." 

Hamish  rose  precipitately.  "  Where  is  Sandy  ? 
Where  is  Odalie  ?  " 

Stuart  pushed  him  back  into  his  chair,  sternly 
giving  him  to  understand  that  the  only  possible 
hope  of  saving  their  lives  was  to  get  away  as 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          317 

quickly  as  might  be  with  the  dispatches  for  Vir 
ginia. 

"  Without  seeing  Sandy  and  Odaiie  ?  "  said  Ham- 
ish,  his  lip  quivering. 

"  We  have  not  the  time  to  spare.  Besides,  would 
they  let  you  risk  it  again,  even  for  them  ?  " 

And  Hamish  was  suddenly  diverted  to  telling  of 
his  risks,  of  all  the  escapes,  by  flood  and  fell,  that 
he  had  made  ;  —  how  often  he  had  been  shot  at  from 
ambush ;  how  he  had  swum  rivers  ;  how  he  had  re 
peatedly  hidden  from  the  Indians  by  dropping  him 
self  down  into  the  hollows  of  trees,  and  once  how 
nearly  he  had  come  to  getting  out  no  more,  the 
place  being  so  strait  that  he  could  scarcely  use  his 
constricted  muscles  to  climb  up  to  the  cavity  that 
had  let  him  in.  He  had  not  so  much  trouble  on 
the  return  trip ;  Ensign  Milne  had  procured  for  him 
a  good  horse,  and  a  rifle — he  had  had  a  brace  of  pis 
tols —  the  horse  was  a  free  goer  —  as  fresh  now  as  if 
he  had  not  been  a  mile  to-day. 

"And  where  is  he  now?"  asked  Demere,  a  look 
of  anxiety  on  his  face. 

"  At  MacLeod  Station,  hitched  there  with  a 
good  saddle  on  him  and  saddle-bags  half  full  of 
corn." 

"  Come,  Hamish,"  said  Stuart,  rising,  "  you  must 
be  off;  some  Indian  might  find  the  horse." 

Hamish's  eyes  filled  with  tears,  —  to  leave  Odaiie 


3i 8          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

and  Sandy  without  a  word  !  He  could  not  endure 
for  the  men  to  see  these  tears,  although  they  thought 
none  the  less  well  of  him  for  them. 

"  Let  me  drop  a  tear  in  farewell  for  Odalie,"  he 
said,  trying  to  be  very  funny,  brushing  his  right  eye 
with  his  right  hand.  cc  And  for  Sandy,"  his  left  eye 
with  his  left  hand.  "  And  Fifine,"  his  right  eye  with 
his  right  hand.  "  And  the  cat,"  his  left  eye  with  his 
left  hand. 

There  could  be  nothing  unmanly  or  girlish  in  this 
jovial  demonstration  ! 

"  Come,  you  zany  !  "  exclaimed  Stuart,  affecting  to 
think  these  tremulous  farewells  very  jocose. 

"  Yes,"  said  Demere,  seriously,  "  we  do  not  know 
how  soon  the  Indians  may  discover  our  use  of  that 
passage,  —  up  to  this  time  it  has  been  our  only 
hope." 

Hamish  gathered  up  his  calash,  and  the  precise 
Demere  assisted  him  to  adjust  it  and  his  disordered 
dress  more  after  the  manner  in  which  Odalie  wore 
it.  Hamish,  as  directed,  took  Stuart's  arm  as  they 
went  out,  his  eyes  still  full  of  tears,  and  for  his  life 
he  could  not  control  the  tremor  of  emotion,  not  of 
fear,  in  the  fibers  of  his  hand,  which  he  was  sure 
the  officer  must  note.  But  Stuart's  attention  was 
fixed  on  the  skies.  It  was  later  than  in  those  days 
when  Odalie  was  wont  to  keep  tryst  with  Choo- 
qualee-qualoo,  now  nearly  a  month  ago.  Still  he 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          319 

fancied  that  in  the  afterglow  of  the  sunset  the 
Indians  might  discern  the  color  and  the  style  of  the 
costume.  Now  and  then  a  ball  flew  from  the  can 
non  to  the  woods,  to  clear  the  forest  of  too  close 
observers, — whatever  risk  there  was  must  needs  be 
dared.  The  cannoneers  summoned  to  this  queer 
duty  looked  at  "  Mrs.  MacLeod  "  curiously,  as  she 
slipped  through  the  embrasure  and  made  her  way 
with  a  swinging  agility  down  the  slope  amongst  the 
fraises  and  then  off  through  the  gloaming  at  a  fresh, 
firm  pace.  Then  they  gazed  at  Stuart,  who  pres 
ently  bade  them  cease  firing,  and  they  had  no  excuse 
to  wait  to  see  her  return.  A  queer  move,  they 
thought  it,  a  very  queer  move ! 

Hope  had  grown  so  inelastic  because  of  the 
taut  tension  to  which  its  fine  fibers  had  been  sub 
jected,  that  Stuart  felt  a  thrill  of  merely  mechani 
cal  apprehension  when  the  next  day  Daniel  Eske, 
the  young  soldier,  came  in,  desiring  to  make  a 
special  report  to  him.  While  on  guard  duty  he  had 
heard  a  deep  subterranean  explosion,  which  had  been 
reported  to  the  officer  of  the  day.  Later,  Choo- 
qualee-qualoo  had  come,  waving  her  flag  of  truce, 
and  after  waiting  vainly  for  Mrs.  MacLeod,  she  had 
ventured  up  the  slope  of  the  scarp,  knowing  full 
well  that  she  was  safe  under  that  white  flag.  She 
had  brought  a  bag  of  beans,  which  she  had  given 
him, —  he  bit  his  tip  and  colored  with  vexation, 


320          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

consciously  ridiculous  in  speaking  of  his  feminine 
admirer  to  his  superior  officer,  —  and  he  had 
taken  the  opportunity  to  ask  some  questions 
about  affairs  outside  the  fort,  upon  which  she  de 
tailed  that  an  Indian  —  it  was  Savanukah  —  had 
seen  Mrs.  MacLeod,  as  he  thought,  enter  the  sub 
terranean  passage  that  used  to  lead  to  MacLeod 
Station.  At  first  he  had  considered  it  a  slight 
matter,  since  the  Carolinian's  French  wife  had 
come  so  often  to  talk  to  Choo-qualee-qualoo.  But 
it  somehow  flashed  into  his  mind  how  this  woman 
had  walked,  —  with  what  a  long  stride,  with  what 
strength,  and  how  fast!  And  suddenly  he  realized 
that  it  was  a  man,  despite  the  full  skirts  and  flutter- 
ings  of  capes  and  calash.  So  Savanukah  ran  swiftly 
to  his  boat  and  pulled  down  the  river,  and  made 
MacLeod  Station  just  in  time  to  see  a  youth,  ar 
rayed  in  buckskins,  issue  from  the  cave  and  mount 
a  tethered  horse.  Savanukah  fired  at  him,  but 
without  effect,  and  the  young  man  wheeled  in  his 
saddle  and  returned  the  fire  with  such  accuracy  that 
even  at  the  distance  and  in  the  twilight  the  ball, 
although  nearly  spent,  struck  Savanukah  in  the 
mouth  with  such  force  as  to  knock  out  a  tooth. 
Then  the  boy  made  off  with  a  tremendous  burst 
of  speed.  And  the  gray  gown  and  the  calash  which 
the  youth  had  worn  were  found  inside  the  passage. 
And  great  was  the  wrath  of  Willinawaugh  !  He 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          321 

had  blown  up  with  powder  both  ends  of  the  pas 
sage, —  like  thunder,  een-ta-qua  ros-ke,  —  use  could 
no  more  be  made  of  it.  But  some  were  sorry, 
wishing  the  paleface  to  return  by  that  way,  so 
that  he  might  be  stabbed  in  the  dark  windings 
of  the  passage.  This  was  impossible  now,  Choo- 
qualee-qualoo  said,  for  the  spring  had  burst  forth, 
forced  in  a  new  direction,  and  was  flooding  all  that 
part  of  the  slope,  flowing  outside  instead  of  within, 
and  Willinawaugh  could  not  now  change  its  dis 
position  if  he  would. 

Stuart  breathed  more  freely.  If  Hamish  should 
return  alone,  which  God  forbid,  and  not  with  an 
armed  force,  the  external  changes  wrought  at  Mac 
Leod  Station  would  preclude  his  effort  to  enter  into 
the  cavern,  and  force  him  to  devise  some  other 
method  of  approach.  He  wondered  at  Willina 
waugh —  to  destroy  so  promising  a  trap  !  But  rage 
may  overpower  at  times  the  most  foxy  craft. 

The  dull  days,  dragging  on,  seemed  each  inter 
minable,,  while  the  beleaguered  garrison  watched  the 
impassive  horizon  and  awaited  developments,  and 
hoped  against  hope.  The  wonted  routine  came  to 
be  abridged  of  necessity;  the  men  on  their  reduced 
fare  were  incapable  of  drill  duty ;  the  best  hope 
was  that  they  might  make  shift  to  stand  to  their 
arms  should  a  sudden  attack  require  the  exertion  of 
all  their  reserve  force  in  the  imminent  peril  of  their 


322          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

lives.  The  diet  of  horse-flesh  proved  not  only  un 
palatable  but  insanitary,  perhaps  because  the  ani 
mals  had  thus  far  shared  the  physical  distresses  of 
the  siege,  and  were  in  miserable  plight,  and  there 
were  as  many  men  on  the  sick  list  as  the  hospital 
could  accommodate;  this  misfortune  was  mitigated  to 
a  degree  when  Choo-qualee-qualoo  brought  another 
bag  of  beans  to  the  hero  of  the  long-range  flirtation, 
and  he  generously  offered  to  share  the  food  with  his 
fellow-sufferers.  Odalie  suggested  its  devotion  to 
hospital  uses;  and  a  few  days  of  a  certain  potage 
which  she  compounded  of  the  beans  and  her  eco 
nomic  French  skill,  and  administered  with  her  own 
hands  to  the  invalids,  with  her  own  compassionate 
smiles,  and  with  a  sauce  of  cheering  words,  put 
a  number  of  the  stouter  fellows  on  their  feet 
again. 

The  efforts  to  amuse  and  entertain  had  given  way 
under  the  stress  of  a  misery  that  could  form  no 
compact  with  mirth,  but  from  time  to  time  the 
officers  made  short  spirited  addresses  to  the  troops 
to  animate  and  encourage  their  hope,  and  continue 
to  the  utmost  their  power  of  resistance.  And  the 
exhalation  of  every  sigh  was  with  a  thought  of 
South  Carolina,  and  the  respiration  of  every  breath 
was  with  a  prayer  toward  Virginia. 

As  the  number  of  horses  had  greatly  diminished., 
and  the  discovery  was  made  that  certain  lean  dogs 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          323 

had  gone  to  the  kitchen  on  an  errand  far  different 
from  the  one  that  used  to  lure  them  to  the  pots, 
about  which  they  had  been  wont  to  greedily  and 
piteously  snuff  and  whine,  the  quiescent  waiting 
and  reliance  on  the  judgment  and  the  capacity  of 
the  commandant  to  extricate  the  garrison  from  this 
perilous  plight  gave  way  anew.  Criticisms  of  the 
management  grew  rife.  The  return  of  Hamish 
MacLeod,  at  the  moment  when  starvation  seemed 
imminent,  and  his  instant  departure  at  so  great  a 
peril,  for  the  circumstances  of  his  escape  had  been 
learned  by  the  soldiers  from  the  confidences  of  Choo- 
qualee-qualoo  to  young  Eske,  who  was  always  free 
with  his  tongue,  implied  thatHamish's  earlier  mission 
had  failed,  and  that  no  troops  were  now  on  the  march 
to  their  succor.  They,  too,  had  seen  the  capering 
Indian  in  the  red  coat  of  an  officer  of  rank,  the  lace 
cravat  of  a  man  of  quality  which  Choo-qualee-qualoo 
flourished,  and  they  deduced  a  shrewd  surmise  of 
Montgomery's  repulse.  The  men  who  had  earli 
est  revolted  against  the  hardships  now  entertained 
rebellious  sentiments  and  sought  to  foster  them  in 
others.  Although,  as  ringleaders  in  the  food  riot, 
they  had  been  summarily  placed  in  irons,  their 
punishment  had  been  too  brief  perhaps  for  a  salu 
tary  moral  effect.  Demere's  severity  was  always 
theoretical,  —  a  mental  attitude  one  might  say. 
The  hardship  of  adding  shackles  to  the  agonies  of 


324          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

slow  starvation  so  preyed  upon  his  heart  that  he 
had  ordered  the  prisoners  released  before  a  sober 
reflection  had  done  its  full  work.  The  exemplary 
conduct,  for  a  time,  of  the  culprits  had  no  sufficient 
counterpart  in  chastened  hearts,  for  they  nourished 
bitterness  and  secretly  agitated  mutiny. 

The  crisis  came  one  morning  when  the  meager 
supply  of  repulsive  food  had  shrunken  to  the  scope 
of  a  few  days'  rations,  the  quantity  always  dwindling 
in  a  regularly  diminishing  ratio;  it  had  recently 
barely  enabled  the  men  to  sustain  the  usual  guard 
duty,  and  they  lay  about  the  parade  at  other  times, 
or  at  full  length  on  the  porches  of  the  barracks,  too 
feeble  and  dispirited  to  stir  hand  or  foot  without 
necessity.  Corporal  O'Flynn,  one  of  the  few  officers 
fit  for  duty,  with  a  shade  of  pallor  on  his  face  a  trifle 
more  ghastly  than  that  of  starvation,  reported  that 
five  men  had  failed  to  respond  to  roll-call,  and  upon 
investigation  it  was  found  that  they  had  burrowed 
out  of  the  fort  in  the  darkness,  seeking  to  desert  to 
the  enemy,  but  their  intentions  being  mistaken,  or 
their  overtures  scorned,  they  had  been  stabbed  and 
scalped  at  the  edge  of  the  forest,  and  there  their 
bodies  were  visible  in  the  early  rays  of  the  sun. 

"  May  become  unpleasant  when  the  wind  shifts," 
remarked  Stuart  easily,  and  without  emotion  appar 
ently,  "  but  we  are  spared  the  duties  of  punish 
ing  deserters  according  to  their  deserts." 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          325 

Demere's  face  had  shown  a  sudden  nervous  con 
traction  but  resumed  its  fixed  reserved  expression, 
and  he  said  nothing. 

Corporal  O'Flynn's  report,  however,  was  not  yet 
exhausted.  He  hesitated,  almost  choked.  The 
blood  rushed  so  scarlet  to  his  face  that  one  might 
have  wondered,  at  the  show  it  made,  that  he  had  so 
much  of  that  essential  element  in  circulation  in  his 
whole  thin  body.  He  lifted  his  voice  as  if  to  urge 
the  concentration  of  Stuart's  attention  which  seemed 
so  casual  —  he  had  it  the  next  moment. 

"  I  feel  like  a  traitor  in  tellin'  it,  sor,"  said 
O'Flynn,  "  I'm  just  one  of  the  men  meself,  an'  it 
breaks  me  heart  intirely  to  go  agin  'em  with  the 
officers.  But  me  duty  as  a  soldier  is  to  the  com 
mandant  of  the  fort,  an'  as  a  man  to  the  poor 
women  an'  childer." 

He  choked  again,  so  reluctant  was  he  in  unfold 
ing  the  fact  that  this  was  but  the  first  step,  provi 
dentially  disastrous,  of  a  plan  by  which  the  fort  and 
the  officers  were  to  be  abandoned,  the  rank  and  file 
determining  to  throw  themselves  on  the  mercy  of  the 
savages,  since  even  to  die  at  their  hands  was  better 
than  this  long  and  futile  waiting  for  succor.  Through 
Choo-qualee-qualoo  some  negotiations  with  the  en 
emy  had  been  set  on  foot,  of  which  O'Flynn  was 
unaware  hitherto,  being  excluded  from  their  councils 
as  a  non-commissioned  officer,  but  after  the  result 


326          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

of  the  desertion  in  the  early  hours  before  dawn, 
Daniel  Eske,  thoroughly  dismayed,  had  once  more 
reverted  to  his  reliance  on  the  superior  wisdom  of 
the  commandant,  and  had  seen  fit  to  disclose  the 
state  of  affairs  to  the  corporal,  whose  loyalty  to  his 
superior  officers  was  always  marked. 

O'Flynn  was  commended,  cautioned  to  be  silent, 
and  the  door  closed. 

The  two  captains  looked  blankly  at  one  another. 

"  The  catastrophe  is  upon  us,"  said  Stuart. 
"  Fort  Loudon  must  fall." 

In  this  extremity  a  council  of  war  was  held.  Yet 
there  seemed  no  course  open  even  to  deliberation. 
On  the  one  hand  rose  mutiny,  starvation,  and 
desertion ;  but  to  surrender  to  such  an  enemy  as 
the  Cherokees  meant  massacre.  Their  terrible  fate 
held  them  in  a  remorseless  clutch  !  At  last,  with 
some  desperate  hope,  such  as  the  unsubstantial  illu 
sion  with  which  drowning  men  catch  at  straws,  that 
the  Indians  might  make  and  keep  terms,  it  was 
agreed  that  Captain  Stuart,  at  his  earnest  desire, 
should  be  the  officer  to  treat  with  the  enemy  and 
secure  such  terms  of  capitulation  as  they  could  be 
induced  to  hold  forth. 

It  might  be  imagined  that  the  little  band  of 
officers,  in  their  hard  stress,  had  become  incapable 
of  any  further  vivid  emotion,  but  in  vicarious  terror 
they  watched  Stuart  step  forth  boldly  and  alone  from 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          327 

the  sally-port,  a  white  flag  in  his  hand,  and  arrayed, 
in-  deference  to  the  Indians'  love  of  ceremony  and 
susceptibility  to  compliment,  in  full  uniform. 

He  stood  on  the  parapet  of  the  covered  way, 
motionless  and  distinct,  in  the  clear  light  of  the 
morning,  against  the  background  of  the  great  red 
clay  embankments.  He  was  evidently  seen,  for 
through  a  spy-glass  Demere  in  the  block-house  tower 
noted  the  instant  stillness  that  fell  like  a  spell  upon 
the  Indian  line  ;  the  figures  of  the  warriors,  crouch 
ing  or  erect,  seemed  petrified  in  the  chance  attitude 
of  the  moment.  That  he  was  instantly  recognized 
by  skulking  scouts  in  the  woods  was  as  evident. 
His  tall,  sinewy  figure ;  his  long,  dense,  blond  hair, 
with  its  heavy  queue  hanging  on  the  shoulders  of  his 
red  coat ;  a  certain  daring,  martial  insouciance  of 
manner,  sufficiently  individualized  him  to  the  far- 
sighted  Cherokees,  and  the  white  flag  in  his  hand  — 
a  token  which  they  understood,  although  they  did 
not  always  respect  it  —  intimated  that  developments 
of  moment  in  the  conduct  of  the  siege  impended. 

There  was  no  sudden  shrill  whistling  of  a  rifle 
ball,  and  Demere,  thinking  of  the  fate  of  Coytmore 
on  the  river-bank  at  Fort  Prince  George,  began  to 
breathe  more  freely.  A  vague  sense  of  renewed 
confidence  thrilled  through  the  watching  group. 
Stuart  had  stipulated  that  he  should  go  alone  — 
otherwise  he  would  not  make  the  essay.  The 


328          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

presence  of  two  or  three  armed  men,  officers  of  the 
fort,  intimated  suspicion  and  fear,  incurred  danger, 
and  yet,  helpless  among  such  numbers,  afforded  no 
protection.  The  others  had  yielded  to  this  argu 
ment,  for  he  knew  the  Indian  character  by  intuition, 
it  would  seem.  He  was  relying  now,  too,  upon  a 
certain  personal  popularity.  He  had  somehow 
engaged  the  admiration  of  the  Indians,  yet  without 
disarming  their  prejudice — a  sort  of  inimical  friend 
ship.  They  all  realized  that  any  other  man  would 
have  now  been  lying  dead  on  the  glacis  with  a  bullet 
through  his  brain,  if  but  for  the  sheer  temptation  to 
pick  him  off  neatly  as  a  target  of  uncommon  interest, 
whatever  his  mission  might  have  betokened. 

How  to  accomplish  this  mission  became  a  problem 
of  an  essential  solution,  and  on  the  instant.  Not  a 
figure  stirred  of  the  distant  Cherokee  braves;  not 
one  man  would  openly  advance  within  range  of  the 
great  guns  that  carried  such  terror  to  the  Indian 
heart.  Stuart  stood  in  momentary  indecision,  his 
head  thrown  back,  his  chin  up,  his  keen,  far-seeing 
gray-blue  eyes  fixed  on  the  motionless  Indian  line. 
Through  the  heated  August  air  the  leaves  of  the 
trees  seemed  to  quiver ;  the  ripples  of  the  river 
scintillated  in  the  sun ;  not  a  breath  of  wind  stirred ; 
on  the  horizon  the  solidities  of  the  Great  Smoky 
Mountains  shimmered  ethereal  as  a  mirage. 

Suddenly  Stuart  was  running,  lightly,  yet  at  no 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          329 

great  speed;  he  reached  the  river-bank,  thrust  a 
boat  out  from  the  gravel,  and  with  the  flag  of 
truce  waving  from  the  prow  he  pushed  off  from  the 
shore,  and  began  to  row  with  long,  steady  strokes 
straight  up  the  river.  He  was  going  to  Chote ! 

The  observers  at  Fort  Loudon,  petrified,  stared 
at  one  another  in  blank  amazement.  The  observers 
at  the  Cherokee  camp  were  freed  from  their  spell. 
The  whole  line  seemed  in  motion.  All  along  the 
river-bank  the  braves  were  speeding,  keeping 
abreast  of  the  swift  little  craft  in  the  middle  of  the 
stream.  The  clamors  of  the  guttural  voices  with 
their  unintelligible  exclamations  came  across  the 
water. 

It  was  like  the  passing  of  a  flight  of  swallows. 
In  less  than  five  minutes  the  boat,  distinctly 
visible,  with  those  salient  points  of  color,  the  red 
coat  and  the  white  flag  against  the  silver-gray  water, 
had  rounded  the  bend ;  every  Indian  runner  was 
out  of  sight ;  and  the  line  of  warriors  had  relapsed 
into  their  silent  staring  at  the  fort,  where  the  garri 
son  dragged  out  three  hours  of  such  poignant 
suspense  as  seldom  falls  to  the  lot  of  even  unhappy 
men. 

The  sun's  rays  deepened  their  intensity ;  the  ex 
hausted,  half-famished  sentries  dripped  with  perspi 
ration,  the  effects  of  extreme  weakness  as  well  as  of 
the  heat,  as  they  stood  shouldering  their  firelocks 


330          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

and  anxiously  watching  from  the  loop-holes  of  the 
block-house  towers,  the  roofs  of  which,  blistering  in 
the  sun,  smelled  of  the  wood  in  a  close,  breathless, 
suffocating  odor  which  their  nerves,  grown  sensitive 
by  suffering,  discriminated  like  a  pain.  The  men  off 
duty  lay  in  the  shadow  of  the  block-houses,  for  the 
rows  of  trees  had  vanished  to  furnish  fuel  for  the 
kitchen,  or  on  the  porches  of  the  barracks,  and  panted 
like  lizards ;  the  officers  looked  at  one  another  with 
the  significance  of  silent  despair,  and  believed  Stuart 
distraught.  Demere  could  not  forgive  himself 
that  he  had  been  persuaded  to  agree  that  Stuart 
should  appear.  Beyond  the  out-works,  however, 
they  had  had  no  dream  of  his  adventuring.  To 
try  the  effect  of  a  personal  appearance  and  invitation 
to  a  conference  was  the  extent  of  the  maneuver  as 
it  was  planned.  There  was  scant  expectation  in 
Fort  Loudon  that  he  would  be  again  seen  alive. 

When  the  tension  of  the  sun  began  to  slacken 
and  the  heat  to  abate ;  when  the  wind  vaguely 
flapped  the  folds  of  the  flag  with  a  drowsing  murmur, 
as  if  from  out  of  sleep  ;  when  the  chirr  of  the  cicada 
from  the  woods  grew  vibratory  and  strident,  sug 
gestive  of  the  passing  of  the  day's  meridian,  and 
heralding  the  long,  drowsy  lengths  of  the  afternoon 
to  come,  the  little  boat,  with  that  bright  touch  of 
scarlet,  shot  out  from  behind  the  wooded  bend  of 
the  river,  and  in  a  few  minutes  was  beached  on  the 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon         331 

gravel  and  Stuart  was  within  the  gates  of  Fort 
Loudon. 

He  came  with  a  face  of  angry,  puzzled  excite 
ment  that  surprised  his  brother  officers,  whose 
discrimination  may  have  been  blunted  in  the  joy 
of  his  safe  and  unexpected  return  and  the  fair 
promises  of  the  terms  of  capitulation  he  had  secured. 
Never  had  a  vanquished  enemy  been  more  consid 
erately  and  cordially  entreated  than  he  at  Chote. 
Oconostota  and  Cunigacatgoah  had  come  down  to 
the  river-bank  on  the  news  of  his  approach  and 
had  welcomed  him  like  a  brother.  To  the  great 
council-hall  he  was  taken,  and  not  one  word  would 
Oconostota  hear  of  his  mission  till  food  was  placed 
before  him,  —  fish  and  fowl,  bread,  and  a  flask  of 
wine ! 

"And  when  Oconostota  saw  that  I  had  been  so 
nearly  starved  that  I  could  hardly  eat  —  Lord  !  — 
how  his  eyes  twinkled  !  "  cried  Stuart,  angrily. 

But  Oconostota  had  permitted  himself  to  com 
ment  on  the  fact.  He  said  that  it  had  grieved 
him  to  know  of  the  sufferings  from  famine  of  his 
brother  and  the  garrison  —  for  were  they  not  all  the 
children  of  the  same  Great  Father !  But  Captain 
Stuart  must  have  heard  of  the  hideous  iniquities 
perpetrated  by  the  British  Colonel  in  burning  the 
Cherokee  towns  in  the  southern  region,  where 
many  of  the  inhabitants  perished  in  the  flames,  and 


332          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

slaying  their  warriors  who  did  naught  but  defend 
their  own  land  from  the  invaders  —  the  land  which 
the  Great  Spirit  had  given  to  the  Cherokees,  and 
which  was  theirs.  And,  now  that  the  terrible  Colonel 
Montgomery  had  been  driven  out  with  his  hordes, 
still  reeking  with  Cherokee  blood,  it  was  but  fit 
that  the  Cherokees  should  take  possession  of  Fort 
Loudon,  which  was  always  theirs,  built  for  them 
at  their  request,  and  paid  for  with  their  blood,  shed 
in  the  English  service,  against  the  enemies  of  the 
English  colonists,  the  French,  who  had  always 
dealt  fairly  with  the  Cherokees. 

Captain  Stuart  bluntly  replied  that  it  did  not 
become  him  to  listen  to  reflections  upon  the 
methods  in  which  British  commanders  had  seen 
fit  to  carry  out  the  instructions  of  the  British  gov 
ernment.  They  had,  doubtless,  acted  according 
to  their  orders,  as  was  their  duty.  For  his  own 
mission,  although  Fort  Loudon  could  be  held 
some  space  longer,  in  which  time  reinforcements, 
which  he  had  reason  to  think  were  on  the  march, 
might  come  to  its  relief,  the  officers  had  agreed  that 
the  sufferings  of  the  garrison  were  such  that  they 
were  not  justified  in  prolonging  their  distress,  pro 
vided  such  terms  of  capitulation  could  be  had  as 
would  warrant  the  surrender  of  the  fort. 

As  the  interpreter,  with  the  wooden  voice,  stand 
ing  behind  the  chief,  gabbled  out  this  rebuke  of  the 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          333 

Cherokee  king's  aspersions  on  Montgomery,  Stuart's 
ever  quick  eye  noted  an  expression  on  the  man's 
face,  habitually  so  blank  and  wooden,  —  he  remem 
bered  it  afterward,  —  an  expression  almost  applaus 
ive.  Then  his  attention  was  concentrated  on  the 
circumlocutions  of  Oconostota,  who,  in  winding 
phrase  almost  affectionate,  intimated  the  tender 
truth  that,  without  waiting  for  these  reinforcements, 
the  enfeebled  garrison  could  be  overpowered  now 
and  destroyed  to  the  last  man  by  a  brisk  onslaught, 
the  Cherokees  taking  the  place  by  storm. 

Stuart  shook  his  head,  and  his  crafty  candor 
strengthened  the  negation. 

"  Not  so  long  as  the  great  guns  bark,"  he 
declared.  cc  They  are  the  dogs  of  war  that  make 
the  havoc." 

Then  Oconostota,  with  that  greed  of  the  warlike 
Cherokee  for  the  details  concerning  this  great  arm 
of  the  British  service,  the  artillery,  always  coveted 
by  the  Indians,  yet  hardly  understood,  listened  to  a 
description  of  the  process  by  which  these  guns  could 
be  rendered  useless  in  a  few  minutes  by  a  despairing 
garrison. 

Their  cannoneers  could  spike  them  after  firing 
the  last  round.  And  of  what  value  would  the  fort 
be  to  the  Cherokees  without  them,  —  it  would  be 
mere  intrenchments  with  a  few  dead  men, — the 
most  useless  things  under  the  sun.  The  English 


334          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

government  would  bring  new  guns,  and  level  the 
works  in  a  single  day.  The  great  chief  knew  the 
power  of  England.  In  the  days  when  Moy  Toy 
sent  his  delegation  to  London,  of  which  he  and 
Atta-Kulla-Kulla  were  members,  to  visit  King 
George,  they  had  seen  the  myriads  of  people  and 
had  heard  many  great  guns  fired  in  salute  to  the 
princely  guests,  and  had  assisted  at  the  review  of 
thousands  and  thousands  of  soldiers. 

And  with  the  reminder  of  all  these  overpowering 
military  splendors  of  his  great  enemy,  Oconostota 
began  to  feel  that  he  would  be  glad  to  secure  pos 
session  of  these  few  of  King  George's  great  guns 
uninjured,  fit  to  bark,  and,  if  occasion  should  offer, 
to  bite. 

From  that  point  the  negotiation  took  a  stable 
footing.  With  many  a  crafty  recurrence  on  the 
part  of  Stuart  to  the  coveted  artillery  at  every 
balking  doubt  or  denial,  it  was  agreed  that  the 
stronghold  should  be  evacuated  ;  —  "  That  the  gar 
rison  of  Fort  Loudon  march  out  with  their  arms 
and  drums,  each  soldier  having  as  much  powder 
and  ball  as  their  officer  shall  think  necessary  for 
their  march,  and  all  the  baggage  they  may  chuse 
to  carry :  That  the  garrison  be  permitted  to  march 
to  Virginia  or  Fort  Prince  George,  as  the  command 
ing  officer  shall  think  proper,  unmolested ;  and  that 
a  number  of  Indians  be  appointed  to  escort  them 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          335 

and  hunt  for  provisions  during  their  march :  That 
such  soldiers  as  are  lame  or  by  sickness  disabled 
from  marching,  be  received  into  the  Indian  towns 
and  kindly  used  until  they  recover,  and  then  be 
allowed  to  return  to  Fort  Prince  George :  That  the 
Indians  do  provide  for  the  garrison  as  many  horses 
as  they  conveniently  can  for  their  march,  agreeing 
with  the  officers  and  soldiers  for  payment :  That  the 
fort,  great  guns,  powder,  ball,  and  spare  arms,  be 
delivered  to  the  Indians  without  fraud  or  further 
delay  on  the  day  appointed  for  the  march  of  the 
troops." 

These  terms  of  capitulation  were  signed  by  Paul 
Demere,  Oconostota,  and  Cunigacatgoah,  and  great 
was  the  joy  the  news  awoke  among  the  garrison  of 
Fort  Loudon.  The  sick  arose  from  their  beds ; 
the  lame  walked,  and  were  ready  to  march ;  almost 
immediately,  in  the  open  space  beneath  the  terrible 
great  guns,  were  men,  —  settlers,  soldiers,  and 
Indians,  —  trying  the  paces  of  horses,  and  chaffering 
over  the  terms  of  sale.  Provisions  were  brought 
in;  every  chimney  sent  up  a  savory  reek.  Women 
were  getting  together  their  little  store  of  valuables 
in  small  compass  for  the  journey.  Children,  re 
cently  good  from  feeble  incapacity  to  be  otherwise, 
were  now  healthily  bad,  fortified  by  a  generous  meal 
or  two.  And  Fifine  was  stroking  the  cat's  humped 
back,  as  the  animal  munched  upon  the  ground  bits 


33 6          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

of  meat  thrown  prodigally  away,  and  telling  her  that 
now  she  would  not  be  eaten,  —  so  had  that  terror 
preyed  upon  the  motherly  baby  heart !  Odalie  had 
some  smiling  tears  to  shed  for  Hamish's  sake,  in  the 
earnest  hope  that  he  might  be  as  well  off,  and  those 
whom  she  had  consoled  in  affliction  now  in  their 
prosperity  sought  to  console  her.  The  officers 
were  hilarious.  They  could  hardly  credit  their 
own  good  fortune  —  permitted  to  surrender  Fort 
Loudon,  after  its  gallant  defense  to  the  last  ex 
tremity,  to  the  savage  Cherokees,  upon  just  such 
terms  as  would  have  been  dictated  by  a  liberal  and 
civilized  enemy !  Demere,  after  the  first  burst 
of  reproach  that  Stuart  should  have  so  recklessly 
endangered  himself,  and  of  joy  that  his  mission  had 
been  so  successfully  accomplished,  was  cheerfully 
absorbed  in  destroying  such  official  papers  as,  fall 
ing  into  the  hands  of  the  French,  might  be  detri 
mental  to  the  British  interest.  Of  them  all,  only 
Stuart  was  doubtful,  angry,  disconsolate.  Perhaps 
because  some  fiber  of  sensitive  pride,  buried  deep, 
had  been  touched  to  the  quick  by  Oconostota's 
ill-disguised  triumph  ;  or  he  realized  that  he  had 
labored  long  here,  and  suffered  much  uselessly, 
and  but  for  the  threatened  desertion  of  the  garrison 
felt  that  the  fort  might  still  be  held  till  relief  could 
reach  it ;  or  he  was  of  the  temperament  that  adorns 
success,  or  even  stalwart  effort,  but  is  blighted  by 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          337 

failure ;  or  he  was  only  staggered  by  the  complete 
ness  of  his  prosperous  negotiations  with  the  Chero- 
kees  and  doubtful  of  their  good  faith,  —  at  all  events 
he  had  lost  his  poise.  He  was  gloomy,  ruminative, 
and  broke  out  now  and  again  with  futile  manifesta 
tions  of  his  disaffection. 

Demere,  burning  letter-books  and  other  papers 
on  the  hearth  of  the  great  chimney-place  of  the 
hall,  looked  up  from  the  table  where  he  sorted 
them  to  remind  Stuart,  as  he  strode  moodily  to  and 
fro,  not  to  leave  things  of  value  to  fall  into  the 
hands  of  the  enemy.  Stuart  paused  for  a  moment 
with  a  gloomy  face.  Then,  "  They  shall  not  have 
this,"  he  said  angrily.  The  little  red  silk  riding- 
mask,  that  was  wont  to  look  down  from  the  wall, 
null  and  inexpressive,  with  no  suggestion  in  its 
vacant,  sightless  orbs  of  the  brightness  of  van 
ished  eyes,  with  no  faint  trace  of  the  fair  face  that  it 
had  once  sheltered,  save  as  memory  might  fill  the 
blank  contour,  began  to  blaze  humbly  as  he  thrust 
it  among  the  burning  papers  on  the  hearth.  An 
odd  interpretation  of  things  of  value,  certainly  —  a 
flimsy  memento  of  some  bright  day,  long  ago,  and 
far  away,  when,  not  all  unwelcome,  he  had  ridden  at 
a  lady's  bridle-rein.  Demere  looked  at  him  with 
sudden  interest,  seemed  about  to  speak,  checked  him 
self  and  said  nothing.  And  thus  with  this  souvenir 
the  romance  of  Stuart's  life  perished  unstoried. 


338          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

More  characteristic  thoughts  possessed  him  later. 
He  came  to  Demere's  bedside  that  night  as  he  lay 
sleeping  in  quiet  peace,  even  his  somnolent  nerves 
realizing  the  prospect  of  release.  Stuart  roused  him 
with  a  new  anxiety.  There  was  a  very  considerable 
quantity  of  powder  in  the  fort,  far  more  than  the 
Indians,  unacquainted  with  the  large  charges  re 
quired  for  cannon,  suspected  that  they  possessed. 
By  surrendering  this  great  supply  of  powder,  Stuart 
argued,  as  well  as  the  guns,  they  only  postponed 
not  precluded  their  destruction.  Brought  down  with 
the  guns  to  Fort  Prince  George  in  the  hands  of 
French  cannoneers,  this  ample  supply  of  artillery 
would  easily  level  those  works  with  the  ground. 
The  French  officers,  who  they  had  reason  to  suspect 
were  lurking  in  the  Lower  Towns,  would  be  unlikely 
to  have  otherwise  so  large  a  store  of  ammunition  in 
reach,  capable  of  maintaining  a  siege,  and  before 
this  could  be  procured  for  the  service  of  the  sur 
rendered  cannon  some  reinforcements  to  the  com 
mandant  of  Fort  Prince  George  would  arrive,  or 
an  aggressive  expedition  be  sent  out  from  South 
Carolina. 

"  At  all  events  this  quantity  of  powder  in  the 
hands  of  the  Cherokees  makes  it  certain  that  a 
siege  of  Fort  Prince  George  will  follow  close  on 
the  fall  of  Fort  Loudon,"  Stuart  declared. 

Demere  raised  himself  on  his  elbow  to  gaze  at 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          339 

Stuart  by  the  light  of  the  flickering  candle  which 
the  visitor  held  in  his  hand. 

"  I  am  afraid  that  you  are  right,"  Demere  said, 
after  a  grave  pause.  "  But  how  can  we  help  it?  " 

"Hide  the  powder,  —  hide  it,"  said  Stuart  ex 
citedly.  "Bury  it!" 

"  Contrary  to  the  stipulations  and  our  agree 
ment,"  returned  Demere. 

Stuart  evidently  struggled  with  himself.  "  If 
these  fiends,"  he  exclaimed,  —  the  triumph  of  Oco- 
nostota  had  gone  very  hard  with  him,  —  "  were  like 
any  other  enemy  we  could  afford  to  run  the  chance. 
But  have  we  the  right  to  submit  the  commandant 
of  Fort  Prince  George  and  his  garrison  —  to  say 
nothing  of  ourselves  and  our  garrison,  hampered  as 
we  are  with  women  and  children,  taking  refuge  with 
him,  —  to  the  risk  of  siege  and  massacre,  fire  and 
torture,  compassed  by  materials  practically  fur 
nished  by  us,  —  on  a  delicate  question  of  military 
ethics?" 

"  If  we  do  not  keep  our  word,  how  can  we  expect 
Oconostota  to  keep  his  word?"  asked  Demere. 

"But  do  we  really  expect  it?  Have  we  any 
guarantee?  " 

Once  more  Stuart  hesitated,  then  suddenly  decided. 
"  But  if  you  have  scruples  "  —  he  broke  off  with  a 
shrug  of  the  shoulders.  "  I  should  leave  Oconostota 
enough  powder  to  amuse  him  with  the  guns  for  a 


340          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

while,  but  not  enough  to  undertake  a  siege.  The 
government  will  surely  occupy  this  place  again.  I 
expect  to  find  the  powder  here  when  I  come  back 
to  Fort  Loudon." 

His  words  were  prophetic,  although  neither  knew 
it.  He  cast  a  hasty  glance  at  Demere,  who  again 
objected,  and  Stuart  went  out  of  the  door  saying 
nothing  further,  the  draught  flickering,  then  extin 
guishing,  the  flame  of  the  candle  in  his  hand. 

It  was  very  dark  about  midnight  when  the  whole 
place  lay  locked  in  slumber.  The  sentries,  watch 
ful  as  ever  in  the  block-house  towers  and  at  the 
chained  and  barred  gates,  noted  now  and  again 
shadowy  figures  about  the  region  of  the  southeast 
bastion,  —  the  old  exhausted  smoke-house  had  been 
in  that  locality,  —  and  thence  suppressed  voices 
sounded  occasionally  in  low-toned,  earnest  talk. 
No  light  showed  save  in  glimpses  for  a  while 
through  the  crevices  in  the  walls  of  the  building 
itself,  and  once  or  twice  when  the  door  opened  and 
was  suddenly  shut.  There  Corporal  O'Flynn  and 
three  soldiers  and  Captain  Stuart  himself,  armed 
with  mattocks,  dug  a  deep  trench  in  the  tough  red 
clay,  carefully  drawing  to  one  side  the  dead  ashes  and 
cinders  left  by  the  fires  of  his  earnest  preparations 
against  the  siege.  Then  the  lights  were  extinguished, 
and  from  the  great  traverse,  in  which  was  the  powder 
magazine,  they  brought  ten  heavy  bags  of  powder, 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          341 

and  laid  them  in  the  trench,  covering  them  over 
with  the  utmost  caution,  lest  a  mattock  strike  a 
spark  from  a  stone  here  and  there  in  the  earth.  At 
last,  still  observing  great  care,  they  tramped  the 
clay  hard  and  level  as  a  floor,  and  spread  again  the 
ashes  and  cinders  over  the  upturned  ground,  laying 
the  chunks  of  wood  together,  as  they  had  burnt  half 
out  after  the  last  fire  many  weeks  ago. 

When  Captain  Stuart  inveigled  Captain  Demere 
thither  the  next  morning,  on  some  pretext  concern 
ing  the  removal  of  the  troops,  he  was  relieved  to 
see  that  although  Demere  was  most  familiar  with 
the  place  he  had  not  even  the  vaguest  suspicion  of 
what  lay  under  his  feet,  for  this  was  the  best  test  as 
to  whether  the  work  had  been  well  done.  It  was 
only  at  the  moment  of  departure,  of  rendering  up 
the  spare  arms,  and  serving  out  ammunition  to  the 
soldiers  for  the  journey,  that  he  was  made  aware  how 
mysteriously  the  warlike  stores  had  shrunken,  but 
Oconostota's  beadlike  eyes  glistened  with  rapture 
upon  attaining  the  key  of  the  magazine  with  its 
hoard  of  explosives,  unwitting  that  it  had  ever 
contained  more. 

The  soldiers  went  out  of  the  gates  in  column,  in 
heavy  marching  order,  their  flags  and  uniforms  mak 
ing  a  very  pretty  show  for  the  last  time  on  the  broad 
open  spaces  about  Fort  Loudon.  For  the  last  time 
the  craggy  banks  and  heavily  wooded  hills  of  the 


342          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

Tennessee  River  echoed  to  the  beat  of  the  British 
drums.  Behind,  like  a  train  of  gypsies,  were  the 
horses  purchased  from  the  Indians,  on  which  were 
mounted  the  women  and  little  girls,  with  here  and 
there  a  sick  soldier,  unable  to  keep  his  place  in 
the  ranks  and  guyed  by  his  comrades  with  reviving 
jollity,  in  the  face  of  hope  and  freedom,  as  "a 
squaw-man."  The  more  active  of  the  children, 
boys  chiefly,  ran  alongside,  and  next  in  order  came 
the  settlers,  now  in  column  as  "  fencibles,"  and  again 
one  or  two  quitting  the  ranks  to  cuff  into  his 
proper  place  some  irrepressible  youngster  disposed 
to  wander.  In  the  rear  were  the  Indian  safe-guards 
through  the  Cherokee  nation,  with  their  firelocks 
and  feathers  and  scanty  attire  that  suggested  com 
fort  this  hot  day.  For  the  August  sun  shone 
from  a  sky  of  cloudless  blue;  a  wind  warm  but 
fresh  met  them  going  the  other  way ;  the  dew 
was  soon  dried  and  the  temperature  rose ;  the 
mountains  glimmered  ethereally  azure  toward  the 
east  with  a  silver  haze  amongst  the  domes  and  peaks, 
and  toward  the  west  they  showed  deeply  and  densely 
purple,  as  the  summit  lines  stretched  endlessly  in 
long  parallel  levels. 

And  so  these  pioneers  and  the  soldiers  set  forth 
on  their  way  out  of  the  land  that  is  now  Tennessee, 
to  return  no  more ;  wending  down  among  the  sun- 
flooded  cane-brakes,  and  anon  following  the  trail 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          343 

through  the  dense,  dark,  grateful  shades  of  the  pri 
meval  woods.  So  they  went  to  return  no  more, — 
not  even  in  the  flickering  guise  of  spectral  visitants 
to  the  scenes  that  knew  them  once,  —  scarcely  as  a 
vague  and  vagrant  memory  in  the  country  where 
they  first  planted  the  home  that  cost  them  so  dearly 
and  that  gave  them  but  little. 

Nevertheless,  a  hearty  farewell  it  bestowed  this 
morning,  —  for  they  sang  presently  as  they  went,  so 
light  and  blithe  of  heart  they  were,  and  the  crags 
and  the  hills,  and  the  rocky  banks  of  that  lovely 
river,  all  cried  out  to  them  in  varying  tones  of  sweet 
echoes,  and  ever  and  again  the  boom  of  the  drums 
beat  the  time. 


CHAPTER   XII 

THE  definite  ranks  were  soon  broken;  the 
soldiers  marched  at  ease  in  and  out  amongst 
the  Indians  and  the  settlers,  all  in  high  good 
humor  ;  jest  and  raillery  were  on  every  side.  They 
ate  their  dinner,  still  on  the  march,  the  provisions  for 
the  purpose  having  been  cooked  with  the  morning 
meal.  Thus  they  were  enabled,  despite  the  retard 
ing  presence  of  the  women  and  children,  and  the 
enfeebling  effects  of  the  long  siege,  to  make  the 
progress  of  between  fifteen  and  twenty  miles  that 
day.  They  encamped  on  a  little  plain  near  the  Indian 
town  of  Taliquo.  There,  the  supper  having  been 
cooked  and  eaten  —  a  substantial  meal  of  game  shot 
during  the  day's  march  —  and  the  shades  of  night 
descending  thick  in  the  surrounding  woods,  Captain 
Stuart  observed  the  inexplicable  phenomenon  that 
every  one  of  their  Indian  guards  had  suddenly 
deserted  them. 

The  fact,  however  contemplated,  boded  no  good. 
The  officers,  doubtless  keenly  sensitive  to  the  re 
newal  of  anxiety  after  so  slight  a  surcease  of  the 
sufferings  of  suspense,  braced  themselves  to  meet 

344 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          345 

the  emergency.  A  picket  line  was  thrown  out; 
sentinels  were  posted  in  the  expectation  of  some 
imminent  and  startling  development ;  the  soldiers 
were  ordered  to  sleep  on  their  arms,  to  be  in  readi 
ness  for  defense  as  well  as  to  gain  strength  for  the 
morrow's  march  and  rest  from  the  fatigues  of  the 
day.  The  little  gypsy-looking  groups  of  women 
and  children,  too,  were  soon  hushed,  and  naught  was 
left  the  anxious  senior  officers  but  to  sleep  if  they 
might,  or  in  default,  as  they  lay  upon  the  ground, 
to  watch  the  great  constellations  come  over  the  verge 
of  the  gigantic  trees  at  the  east  of  the  open  space, 
and  deploy  with  infinite  brilliance  across  the  parade 
of  the  sky,  and  in  glittering  alignment  pass  over 
the  verge  of  the  western  woods  and  out  of  sight.  So 
came  the  great  Archer,  letting  fly  myriads  of  arrows 
of  flakes  of  light  in  the  stream  near  the  camp.  So 
came  in  slow,  gliding  majesty  the  Swan,  with  all  the 
splendor  of  the  Galaxy,  like  infinite  unfoldings  of 
white  wings,  in  her  wake.  So  came  the  Scorpio,  with 
coil  on  coil  of  sidereal  scintillations,  and  here  and 
again  the  out-thrust  dartings  of  a  malign  red  star. 
And  at  last  so  came  the  morn. 

Demere,  who  had  placed  himself,  wrapped  in  his 
military  cloak,  on  the  ground  near  Stuart,  that  they 
might  quietly  speak  together  in  the  night  without 
alarming  the  little  camp  with  the  idea  of  precautions 
and  danger  and  plotting  and  planning,  noted  first  a 


346          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

roseate  lace-like  scroll  unrolled  upon  the  zenith 
amidst  the  vague,  pervasive,  gray  suggestions  of 
dawn.  He  turned  his  head  and  looked  at  his  friend 
with  a  smile  of  banter  as  if  to  upbraid  their  fears ; 

—  for  here  was  the  day,  and  the  night  was  past ! 

A  sudden  wild  clamor  smote  upon  the  morning 
quiet.  The  outposts  were  rushing  in  with  the  cry 
that  the  woods  on  every  side  were  full  of  Cherokees, 
with  their  faces  painted,  and  swinging  their  toma 
hawks  ;  the  next  moment  the  air  resounded  with 
the  hideous  din  of  the  war-whoop.  Demere's  voice 
rose  above  the  tumult,  calling  to  the  men  to  fall 
in  and  stand  to  their  arms.  A  volley  of  musketry 
poured  in  upon  the  little  camp  from  every  side. 

Demere  fell  at  the  first  fire  with  three  other  offi 
cers  and  twenty-seven  soldiers.  Again  and  again, 
from  the  unseen  enemy  masked  by  the  forest,  the 
women  and  children,  the  humble  beasts  of  burden, 

—  fleeing  wildly  from  side  to  side  of  the  space, — 
the  soldiers  and  the  backwoodsmen,  all  received  this 
fusillade.     The  men  had  been  hastily  formed  into  a 
square  and  from  each  front  fired  volleys  as  best  they 
might,  unable  to  judge  of  the  effect  and  conscious 
of  the  futility  of  their  effort,  surrounded  as  they 
were  on  every  side.     Now  and  again  a  few,  impelled 
by   despair,   made  a  wild   break  for  liberty,  unre 
strained  by  the  officers  who  gave  them  what  chance 
they  might  secure,  and  with  five  or  six  exceptions 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          347 

these  were  shot  down  by  the  Indians  after  reaching 
the  woods.  The  devoted  remnant,  righting  until 
the  last  round  of  ammunition  was  exhausted,  were 
taken  prisoners  by  the  triumphant  savages.  Stuart, 
his  face  covered  with  blood  and  his  sword  dripping, 
was  pinioned  before  he  could  be  disarmed,  and  then 
helpless,  hopeless,  with  what  feelings  one  may  hardly 
imagine,  he  was  constrained  to  set  forth  with  his 
captor  on  the  return  march  to  Fort  Loudon. 

The  Cherokees  could  hardly  restrain  their  joy 
in  thus  taking  him  alive.  So  far-famed  had  he 
become  among  them,  so  high  did  they  esteem  his 
military  rank,  so  autocratic  seemed  his  power  in  the 
great  stronghold  of  Fort  Loudon,  with  his  red- 
coated  soldiers  about  him,  obeying  his  words,  even 
saluting  his  casual  presence,  that  it  afforded  the 
most  aesthetic  zest  of  revenge,  the  most  acute 
realization  of  triumph,  to  contemplate  him  as  he 
stood  bound,  bloody,  bareheaded  in  the  sun,  while 
the  very  meanest  of  the  lowest  grade  of  the  tribes 
men  were  free  to  gather  round  him  with  gibes 
and  menacing  taunts  and  buffets  of  derision.  His 
hat  had  been  snatched  off  in  order  to  smite  him 
with  it  in  the  face ;  his  hair,  always  of  special  inter 
est  to  the  Indians  because  of  its  light  brown  color 
and  dense  growth,  was  again  and  again  caught  by  its 
thick,  fair  plait  with  howls  of  delight,  and  if  the  grasp 
of  the  hand  unaided  could  have  rent  the  scalp  from 


348          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

the  head,  those  fierce  derisive  jerks  would  have  com 
passed  the  feat ;  more  than  one  whose  rage  against 
him  was  not  to  be  gratified  by  these  malevolently 
jocose  manifestations  of  contempt,  gave  him  such 
heavy  and  repeated  blows  over  the  head  with  the 
butt  of  their  firelocks  that  they  were  near  clubbing 
the  prisoner  to  death,  when  this  circumstance 
attracted  the  attention  of  his  captor,  Willinawaugh, 
who  was  fain  to  interfere.  Stuart,  regretting  the 
intervention,  realized  that  he  was  reserved  to  make 
sport  for  their  betters  in  the  fiercer  and  more  dra 
matic  agonies  of  the  torture  and  the  stake. 

His  fortitude  might  well  have  tempted  them.  In 
a  sort  of  stoical  pride  he  would  not  wince.  Never 
did  he  cry  out.  He  hardly  staggered  beneath  the 
crushing  blows  of  the  muskets,  delivered  short  hand 
and  at  close  quarters,  that  one  might  have  thought 
would  have  fractured  his  skull.  That  the  interposi 
tion  of  Willinawaugh  was  not  of  the  dictates  of 
clemency  might  be  inferred  from  the  manner  in 
which  the  return  journey  was  accomplished.  Forced 
to  keep  pace  with  his  captor  on  horseback  Stuart 
traveled  the  distance  from  Taliquo  Town  to  Old 
Fort  Loudon  in  double -quick  time,  bareheaded, 
pinioned,  in  the  blazing  meridian  heat  of  a  sultry 
August  day.  He  hoped  he  would  die  of  exhaus 
tion.  In  the  long-continued  siege  of  Fort  Loudon, 
necessitating  much  indoor  life,  to  which  he  was  little 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          349 

used,  the  texture  of  his  skin  had  become  delicate 
and  tender,  and  now  blistered  and  burned  as  if  under 
the  touch  of  actual  cautery.  With  the  previous 
inaction  and  the  unaccustomed  exposure  the  heat 
suggested  the  possibility  of  sunstroke  to  offer  a 
prospect  of  release. 

But  he  came  at  last  to  the  great  gates  of  Fort 
Loudon  with  no  more  immediate  hurt  than  a  biting 
grief  deep  in  his  heart,  the  stinging  pain  of  cuts  and 
bruises  about  his  head  and  face,  and  a  splitting, 
throbbing,  blinding  headache.  Not  so  blinding 
that  he  did  not  see  every  detail  of  the  profane  occu 
pancy  of  the  place  on  which  so  long  he  had  expended 
all  his  thought  and  every  care,  in  the  defense  of 
which  he  had  cheerfully  starved,  and  would  with 
hearty  good-will  have  died.  All  the  precise  military 
decorum  that  characterized  it  had  vanished  in  one 
short  day.  Garbage,  filth,  bones,  broken  bits  of 
food  lay  about  the  parade,  that  was  wont  to  be  so 
carefully  swept,  with  various  litter  from  the  plunder 
of  the  officers'  quarters,  for  owing  to  the  limited 
opportunity  of  transportation  much  baggage  had 
been  left.  This  was  still  in  progress,  as  might  be 
judged  from  the  figures  of  women  and  men  seen 
through  the  open  doors  and  now  again  on  the  gal 
leries,  chaffering  and  bargaining  over  some  trifle  in 
process  of  sale  or  exchange.  Indian  children  raced 
in  and  out  of  the  white-washed  interiors  of  the 


350          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

barracks  which  had  been  glaringly  clean  ;  already 
the  spring  branch  was  choked  by  various  debris  and, 
thus  dammed,  was  overflowing  its  rocky  precincts  to 
convert  the  undulating  ground  about  it  into  a  slimy 
marsh.  Myriads  of  flies  had  descended  upon  the 
place.  Here  and  there  horses  were  tethered  and 
cows  roamed  aimlessly.  Idle  savages  lay  sprawling 
about  over  the  ground,  sleeping  in  the  shade.  In 
the  block-houses  and  towers  and  along  the  parade, 
where  other  braves  shouldered  the  firelocks,  the 
surrendered  spare  arms,  mimicking  the  drill  of  the 
soldiers  with  derisive  cries  of  "Plesent  Ahms!" 
"Shouldie  Fa  lock!"  "Ground  Fa  lock!"  only 
such  injury  as  bootless  folly  might  compass  was  to 
be  deplored,  but  upon  the  terrepleine  in  the  north 
east  bastion  several  Cherokees  were  working  at  one 
of  the  great  cannons,  among  whom  was  no  less  a  per 
sonage  than  Oconostota  himself,  striving  to  master 
the  secrets  of  its  service.  The  box  of  gunner's  imple 
ments  was  open,  and  Stuart  with  a  touch  of  returning 
professional  consciousness  wondered  with  that  con 
tempt  for  ignorance  characteristic  of  the  expert  what 
wise  project  they  had  in  progress  now.  For  the  gun 
had  just  been  charged,  but  with  that  economy  of 
powder,  the  most  precious  commodity  in  these  far 
away  wilds,  for  which  the  Indians  were  always  noted. 
The  ball,  skipping  languidly  out,  had  dropped  down 
the  embankment  outside  and  rolled  along  the  ground 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          351 

with  hardly  more  force  than  if  impelled  down  an 
alley  by  a  passable  player  at  bowls,  barely  reaching 
the  glacis  before  coming  to  a  full  halt.  Realizing 
the  difficulty,  the  gun  under  the  king's  directions 
was  shotted  anew ;  erring  now  in  the  opposite  ex 
treme,  it  was  charged  so  heavily  that,  perhaps  from 
some  weakness  in  the  casting,  or  the  failure  to  duly 
sponge  and  clean  the  bore,  or  simply  from  the 
expansive  force  of  the  inordinate  quantity  of  powder, 
the  piece  exploded,  killing  two  of  the  savages, 
serving  as  gunners,  and  wounding  a  third.  The 
ball,  for  the  cannon  had  been  improperly  pointed 
by  some  mischance,  struck  the  side  of  the  nearest 
block-house,  and  as  its  projectile  force  was  partly 
spent  by  the  explosion,  the  tough  wood  turned  it ; 
it  ricochetted  across  the  whole  expanse  of  the  enclo 
sure,  striking  and  killing  an  Indian  lying  asleep  on 
the  opposite  rampart.  A  vast  uproar  ensued,  and 
Stuart  could  have  laughed  aloud  in  bitter  mirth  to 
see  Oconostota  almost  stunned  alike  by  the  surprise 
and  the  force  of  the  concussion,  timorously  and 
dubiously  eying  the  wreck.  Then,  with  a  sub 
dued  air  of  renunciation  and  finality,  "  Old  Hop," 
as  the  soldiers  called  him,  came  limping  carefully 
down  the  steep  ramp  from  the  terrepleine,  evi 
dently  just  enlightened  as  to  the  dangers  lurk 
ing  about  the  breech  of  the  cannon,  well  as  he 
had  long  been  acquainted  with  the  menace  of 


352          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

its  muzzle.  The  fury  of  the  savages  bore  some 
similarity  to  the  ricochet  forces  of  the  misdirected 
cannon-ball.  Stuart  plainly  perceived  himself  des 
tined  to  bear  the  brunt  of  the  infuriating  mishap  in 
which,  although  he  had  no  agency,  he  might  be 
suspected  of  taking  secret  and  extreme  delight.  It 
was  for  a  moment  a  reversal  of  the  red  man's 
supremacy  in  the  arts  of  war,  that  had  been  demon 
strated  by  the  results  of  the  siege,  the  acquisition  of 
the  ordnance,  the  surprise  and  the  massacre  of  the 
capitulated  garrison.  In  the  stress  of  the  noisy  mo 
ment,  when  the  corpses  had  been  carried  off  and  the 
howling  women  and  their  friends  had  followed  them 
to  their  assigned  homes  in  the  barracks,  several 
braves,  including  Oconostota  himself,  had  become 
aware  of  Stuart's  return  and  gathered  around  him. 

Nothing  could  have  been  more  acutely  malevo 
lent  than  Oconostota's  twinkling  eyes ;  no  words 
could  have  shown  a  keener  edge  of  sarcasm  than 
his  greeting  of  the  officer  once  more  by  the  title  of 
his  dear  brother.  Stuart,  impolitic  for  once,  dis 
dained  to  respond,  and,  grimly  silent,  eyed  him 
with  a  sort  of  stoical  defiance  that  struck  the 
Indian's  mummery  dumb.  There  was  a  moment 
of  inaction  as  they  all  contemplated  him.  His 
vigor,  his  fortitude,  his  rank,  the  consciousness 
how  his  proud  spirit  raged  in  his  defeat  and  despair, 
all  combined  to  render  him  a  notable  victim  and 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          353 

promised   a   long   and   a    keen    extension    of    the 
pleasures  of  witnessing  his  torture. 

And  at  that  instant  of  crisis,  as  if  to  seal  his 
doom,  a  great  guttural  clamor  arose  about  the 
southeast  bastion,  and  here  was  Willinawaugh,  with 
wild  turbulent  gesticulations,  and  starting  gleaming 
eyes,  and  a  glancing  upheaving  tomahawk,  for  in  the 
perspective  a  dozen  hale  fellows  were  dragging  out 
of  the  pit  beneath  the  old  smoke-house  the  ten 
bags  of  powder  that  Stuart  had  concealed  there  — 
only  two  nights  ago,  was  it  ?  —  it  seemed  a  century  ! 
How  had  they  the  craft  to  find  them,  so  securely, 
so  impenetrably  were  they  hidden  !  Stuart's  store 
of  Cherokee  enabled  him  to  gather  the  drift  of 
the  excited  talk.  One  of  the  Indians,  with  the 
keen  natural  senses  of  the  savage,  had  smelled 
the  freshly  turned  clay  —  smelled  //,  in  that  assort 
ment  of  evil  odors  congregated  in  the  parade ! 

—  and  had  sought  to  discover  what  this  might  be 
so  recently  buried.     Fraud  !   Fraud  !  the  cry  went  up 
on  every  side.     Unmasked  fraud,  and  Stuart  should 
die  the  death !     He  had  violated  the  solemn  agree 
ment  by  which  the  garrison  was  liberated ;   he  had 
surrendered  the  spare  arms  and  the  cannon  indeed, 
but  only  a  fraction  of  the  powder  of  the  warlike  stores 

—  and  he  should  die  the  death  and  at  once.      Stuart 
wondered  that  he  was  not  torn  to  pieces  by  the  infu 
riated  savages,  protesting  their  indignation  because  of 


354         The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

his  violation  of  the  treaty,  —  while  his  garrison,  under 
the  Cherokees'  solemn  agreement  of  safe-conduct, 
lay  in  all  their  massacred  horrors  unburied  on  the 
plains  of  Taliquo.  The  cant  of  the  Cherokees,  their 
hypocrisy,  and  their  vaunting  clamor  of  conscience 
made  them  seem,  if  one  were  disposed  to  be  cynical, 
almost  civilized !  Doubtless,  but  for  Oconostota's 
statesmanlike  determination  to  sift  the  matter  first, 
Stuart  could  not  have  been  torn  from  among  the 
tribesmen  and  dragged  to  the  seclusion  of  his  own 
great  mess-hall,  where  the  door  was  closed  and  barred 
in  their  distorted  faces  as  they  followed  with  their 
howls.  He  was  required  to  stand  at  one  end  of  the 
grievously  dismantled  room  and  detail  his  reason 
for  this  reserve  of  the  powder.  Had  he  grounds 
to  suspect  any  renewal  of  the  English  occupancy  ? 
Had  he  knowledge  of  forces  now  on  the  march  in 
the  expectation  of  raising  the  siege  of  Fort  Loudon  ? 
Oconostota  pointed  out  the  desirability  of  telling 
the  truth,  with  a  feeling  allusion  to  the  Great  Spirit, 
the  folly  of  seeking  to  deceive  the  omniscient 
Indian,  as  the  discovery  of  the  powder  sufficiently 
illustrated,  and  the  discomforts  that  would  ensue  to 
Captain  Stuart,  should  it  be  found  necessary  to 
punish  him  for  lying,  by  burning  him  alive  in  his 
own  chimney-place,  admirably  adapted  for  the 
purpose.  Oconostota  sat  now  with  his  back  to  it, 
with  all  his  council  of  chiefs  in  a  semicircle  about 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          355 

him,  on  the  buffalo  rug  on  the  broad  hearth.  The 
Indian  interpreter  Quoo-ran-be-qua,  the  great  Oak, 
stood  behind  him  and  looked  across  the  length  of 
the  room  at  Captain  Stuart,  the  only  other  person 
standing,  and  clattered  out  his  wooden  sentences. 

Stuart  could  make  no  further  effort.  His  capacity 
to  scheme  seemed  exhausted.  He  replied  in  his 
bluff,  off-hand  manner,  his  bloody  head  held  erect, 
that  they  now  had  more  powder  than  was  good  for 
them, — witness  the  bursting  of  that  costly  great  gun ! 
He  had  buried  the  powder  in 'the  hope  of  further 
English  occupancy  of  the  fort,  which  he  had,  how 
ever,  no  reason  to  expect ;  it  was  only  his  hope,  —  his 
earnest  hope  !  He  had  left  them  spare  arms,  great 
guns,  ball,  powder,  —  much  powder,  —  and  if  he 
had  seen  fit  to  reserve  some  store  he  could  say,  with 
a  clear  conscience,  that  it  was  done  only  in  the  inter 
ests  of  peace  and  humanity,  and  because  of  doubts 
of  their  good  faith,  —  how  well  grounded  the  blood 
shed  this  day  upon  the  plains  of  Taliquo  might  tes 
tify  !  His  friends,  his  comrades,  were  treacherously 
murdered  under  the  safe-conduct  of  the  Cherokee 
nation.  And  if  he  were  to  die  too,  he  was  fully 
prepared  to  show  with  what  courage  he  could  do  it. 

His  eyes  flashed  as  he  spoke ;  they  seemed  to 
transmit  a  spark  across  the  room  to  the  dull  orbs 
of  the  interpreter.  And  what  was  this  ?  Stuart's 
knowledge  of  the  Cherokee  language  enabled  him 


356          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

to  discern  the  fact  that  after  a  moment's  hesitation 
Quoo-ran-be-qua  was  clacking  out  a  coherent  state 
ment  to  the  effect  that  the  concealment  of  the 
powder  was  Captain  Demere's  work,  and  wrought 
unknown  to  Stuart  during  his  absence  on  his  mis 
sion  to  Chote,  where,  as  the  great  chiefs  well  knew, 
he  was  detained  several  hours.  Stuart  stared  in 
astonishment  at  the  interpreter,  who,  blandly  secure 
in  the  conviction  that  the  prisoner  did  not  compre 
hend  the  Cherokee  language,  maintained  his  usual 
stolid  aspect.  Whether  Stuart's  courage  so  enforced 
admiration,  or  whatever  quality  had  secured  for  him 
the  regard  of  the  higher  grade  of  Indians,  the  inter 
preter  had  sought,  by  an  unrecognized,  unrewarded 
effort,  to  save  the  officer's  life  by  a  sudden  stroke  of 
presence  of  mind, — a  subterfuge  which  he  supposed, 
in  his  simplicity,  undiscoverable. 

There  were  milder  countenances  now  in  the  circle, 
and  Stuart's  attention  was  presently  concentrated 
upon  an  eager  controversy  between  Atta-Kulla-Kulla 
and  Willinawaugh  that  was  curiously  enough,  at  this 
moment  of  gravest  council,  sitting  in  judgment  on 
the  disposal  of  a  human  life,  a  matter  of  chaffer,  of 
bargain  and  sale.  Willinawaugh  had  already  refused 
a  new  rifle  and  a  horse  —  and  then  two  horses  be 
sides,  and,  still  untempted,  shook  his  head.  And 
suddenly  the  interest  in  the  concealment  of  the 
powder  collapsed,  and  they  were  all  looking  at 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          357 

Willinawaugh,  who  gazed  much  perplexed  down  at 
the  ground,  all  his  wrinkles  congregated  around  his 
eyes,  eager  to  acquire  yet  loath  to  trade,  while  Atta- 
Kulla-Kulla,  keen,  astute,  subtle,  plied  him  with 
offers,  and  tempting  modifications  of  offers,  for  the 
Cherokees  of  that  date  were  discriminating  jockeys 
and  had  some  fine  horses. 

The  wind  came  in  at  the  loop-holes  and  stirred 
the  blood-clotted  hair  on  the  prisoner's  brow,  and 
the  suspension  of  the  mental  effort  that  the  exami 
nation  cost  him  was  for  a  moment  a  relief;  the 
shadowy  dusk  of  the  ill-lighted  room  was  grateful 
to  his  eyes,  the  heavy,  regular  throbbing  of  his  head 
grew  less  violent.  He  could  even  note  the  incon 
gruity  of  the  situation  when  he  saw  that  Willina 
waugh  resisted  upon  the  point  that  the  matter  was 
with  him  a  question  of  character !  The  chief  said 
he  had  lost  his  standing  in  public  estimation  because 
he  had  allowed  the  Englishman,  MacLeod,  and  his 
brother,  to  deceive  him  on  the  pretense  of  being 
French, —  for  although  he  (Willinawaugh)  spoke 
French  himself,  and  that  better  tnan  some  people  who 
had  lost  their  front  tooth,  hs  could  not  understand 
such  French  as  the  two  Scotchmen  spoke,  nor,  indeed, 
as  some  Cherokees  spoke,  with  their  front  tooth  out. 

Savanukah,  seated  on  tne  rug.  an  expression  of 
poignant  mortification  on  his  face,  his  lips  fast  closed 
over  the  missing  tooth,  only  muttered  disconsolately, 


358          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

in  his  mingled  French  and  Cherokee  jargon,  "  C'est 
dommage!  Sac-lit  bleu/  Noot-tef*  Ugh!  en  verite — 
O-se-u/"^ 

Willinawaugh,  pausing  merely  for  effect,  con 
tinued.  He  himself  was  not  an  interpreter,  to  be 
sure ;  he  was  a  Cherokee  war-captain,  with  a  great 
reputation  to  sustain.  He  had  captured  the  pris 
oner,  and  it  ill  accorded  with  his  honor  to  yield  him 
to  another. 

"  Cbo-eb  !  "  %  said  Atta-Kulla-Kulla,  softly. 

And  Stuart  became  aware,  with  a  start  that 
almost  dislocated  his  pinioned  arms,  that  it  was  the 
transfer  of  his  custody,  the  purchase  of  himself,  over 
which  they  were  bargaining. 

"  Nankke  —  soutare"  §  urged  Atta-Kulla-Kulla. 

Again  Willinawaugh  shook  his  head.  Was  he 
some  slight  thing,  —  seequa,  cbeeffo,  an  opos 
sum,  a  rabbit?  "  Sinnawab  na  wora /"  \\  he 
cried  sonorously.  For  months,  he  said,  he  had 
besieged  that  man  in  his  great  stronghold  of  Fort 
Loudon.  Like  a  panther  he  had  watched  it ;  like 
a  spider  he  had  woven  his  webs  about  it ;  like  a 
wolf  by  night  he  had  assaulted  it ;  like  a  hawk  he 
had  swooped  down  upon  it  and  had  taken  it  for  the 
Cherokee  nation  ;  and  it  was  a  small  matter  if  he, 
who  spoke  French  so  well,  had  not  comprehended 

*  Tooth  !  t  Vei7  excellent.  J  Three. 

J  Four-  -six.  ||  The  great  hawk  is  at  home  ! 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          359 

an  Englishman  who  spoke  French  like  an  unknown 
tongue,  and  had  let  him  pass,  being  deceived ! 

Would  the  great  chief,  whose  words  in  whatever 
language  were  of  paramount  importance,  accept  a 
money  price  ? 

As  several  gold  pieces  rolled  out  on  the  buffalo 
rug,  the  wrinkles  so  gathered  around  Willinawaugh's 
eyes  that  those  crafty  orbs  seemed  totally  eclipsed. 
He  wagged  his  head  to  and  fro  till  "  him  top-feathers  " 
temporarily  obliterated  the  squad  of  henchmen  be 
hind  him,  in  woe  that  he  could  not  take  the  money, 
yet  not  in  indecision. 

For  lo,  he  said,  who  had  done  so  much  as  he, 
whose  prestige  had  been  touched  for  a  trifle,  whose 
best-beloved  brother,  Savanukah,  had  maligned  him 

—  for  the  sake  of  an   Englishman  who   could   not 
speak  French  so  that  it  could  be  understood.     He 
had  let  that  Englishman  pass — it  was  a  small  matter, 
and  if  any  had  sustained  harm  it  was  he  himself 

—  for  the  English  brother  in  the  French  squaw's 
dress  had  escaped  through  his  lines,  and  came  near 
raising  the  siege,  perhaps  —  because  of  the  French 
squaw's  dress.     But  he  was  not  there,  and  he  gave 
the  English  boy  no  front  tooth  ! 

At  this  reiterated  allusion,  Savanukah's  guttural 
grunt,  O-se-u  /  was  almost  a  groan. 

"  Rifle,  six  horses,  seven  pieces  of  gold  in  ransom," 
said  Atta-Kulla-Kulla,  slowly  massing  his  wealth. 


360          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

Once  more  Willinawaugh  shook  his  head.  His 
prestige  had  suffered  because  of  aspersions.  Yet  he 
had  besieged  the  fort  and  reduced  the  two  captains 
and  their  splendid  cannon  —  this  for  the  Cherokee 
nation  !  He  had  followed  hard  on  the  march  of  the 
garrison,  and  with  Oconostota  and  his  force  had 
surrounded  them  and  killed  many,  and  captured  the 
great  Captain  Stuart  alive !  — this  for  the  revenge  of 
the  Cherokee  nation  !  But  the  scalp  of  the  great 
Captain  Stuart,  with  its  long  fair  hair,  like  none 
others,  was  a  trophy  for  himself —  this  he  should 
wear  at  his  belt  as  long  as  he  should  live,  that  when 
he  told  how  he  had  wrought  for  the  Cherokee  nation 
none  should  say  him  nay  ! 

Oconostota  suddenly  showed  a  freshened  interest. 
He  turned  to  Atta-Kulla-Kulla,  who  sat  on  his 
right  hand,  and  in  an  eager,  low  voice  spoke  for  a 
moment ;  the  half-king  seeming  anxious,  doubtful, 
then  nodded  in  slow  and  deliberative  acquiescence. 
Meantime  Willinawaugh's  words  flowed  on. 

And  —  he  lifted  his  fierce  eyes  in  triumph  to  the 
captive's  face  —  for  all  those  weary  days  of  belea- 
guerment,  for  every  puff  of  smoke  from  the  shotted 
guns,  for  every  blaze  they  belched,  for  every  ball, 
death  freighted,  they  vomited,  for  every  firelock 
that  spoke  from  the  loop-holes  in  the  midnight 
attack,  would  be  meted  out  Captain  Stuart's  penalty 
—  in  pangs,  with  knives,  with  cords,  with  hot  coals, 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          361 

with  flames  of  fire  !  The  time  had  come  to  reward 
his  patience ! 

"You  have  done  well,"  said  Atta-Kulla-Kulla, 
cc  you  should  think  well  on  your  reward !  " 

And  he  laid  before  Willinawaugh  a  fine  gold 
watch  —  an  English  hunting  watch,  with  a  double 
case,  and  the  works  were  running ;  doubtless,  it  was 
another  trophy  from  the  slaughtered  officers  of  Col 
onel  Montgomery's  harassed  march.  Willinawaugh 
was  stricken  dumb. 

Stuart,  in  whose  heart  poor  Hope,  all  bruised  and 
bleeding,  with  wings  broken  but  about  to  spread 
anew,  astonished,  overcome,  with  some  poignant 
pang  of  gratitude  that  the  semblance  of  kindness 
should  be  again  extended  to  him  by  aught  on  earth, 
felt  a  stifling  suffocation  when  Oconostota's  voice 
broke  in  on  his  behalf,  for  naught  from  the  crafty 
Cherokee  king  boded  good.  The  "  Great  Warrior" 
declared  that  Willinawaugh's  deeds  spoke  for  them 
selves  —  not  in  French,  not  in  English,  but  in  the 
Cherokee  tongue  —  in  flame  and  in  blood,  in  cour 
age  and  in  victory.  The  prisoner's  scalp  was  no 
great  matter  in  the  face  of  the  fact  of  Fort  Loudon. 
The  long  fair  hair  of  the  English  Captain  to  hang  at 
his  belt  if  he  liked,  but  here  was  Fort  Loudon  to 
swing  forever  at  the  silver  belt  of  the  Tennessee 
River!  He  thought  the  great  Willinawaugh  had  a 
right  to  choose  his  reward  —  the  goods  or  the  scalp. 


362          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

The  scalp  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  could  not  wear,  not 
having  taken  it.  And  the  great  Willinawaugh  could 
be  present  and  rejoice  when  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  should 
choose  to  burn  the  captive ;  for  whom  he,  himself, 
and  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  had  devised  a  certain  oppor 
tunity  of  usefulness  to  the  Cherokee  nation  before 
Stuart  should  be  called  upon  to  expiate  his  crimes  at 
the  stake  to  satisfy  the  vengeance  of  his  conqueror. 

And  who  so  glad  as  Willinawaugh  to  lose  naught 
of  his  satisfaction  —  neither  his  material  nor  im 
material  reward?  who  now  so  glad  to  protest  that 
he  would  waive  any  personal  gratification  that  stood 
in  the  way  of  utility  to  the  Cherokee  nation?  He 
had  the  watch  in  his  hand,  dangling  by  the  gold 
chain  and  seals;  the  ticking  caught  his  ear.  He 
held  it  up  close,  with  an  expression  of  childish 
delight  that  metamorphosed  his  fierce  face  and 
seemed  actually  to  freshen  the  expression  of  "  him 
top-feathers." 

In  obedience  to  a  motion  of  Atta-Kulla-Kulla's 
hand,  Stuart  followed  him  out  to  the  parade  in  the 
red  rays  of  the  sinking  sun,  —  how  often  thence  had 
he  watched  it  go  down  behind  the  level  ramparts  of 
the  Cumberland  Mountains !  They  passed  through 
the  staring  motley  throng  to  Captain  Demere's  house 
which  the  half-king  had  chosen  for  his  own  quarters. 
It  was  a  log-cabin,  floored,  and  of  two  rooms  with  a 
roofed  but  open  passage  between,  not  unlike  the 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          363 

cabins  of  the  region  of  the  present  day.  Here 
the  Cherokee  paused,  and  with  a  pass  or  two  of  the 
scalping-knife  cut  the  ropes  that  pinioned  Stuart, 
opened  the  door  of  Demere's  bedroom  and  with 
an  impassive  face  sternly  motioned  him  to  enter. 
The  door  was  closed  and  Stuart  was  alone  in 
the  quarters  reserved  for  the  chief.  It  had  not  yet 
been  invaded  by  the  filthy  plundering  gangs  with 
out,  and  its  order  and  military  neatness  and  de 
corum  affected  his  quivering  nerves  as  a  sort  of 
solace  —  as  of  a  recurrence  of  the  sane  atmosphere 
of  right  reason  after  a  period  of  turbulent  mania. 
And  suddenly  his  heart  was  all  pierced  by  grief 
and  a  sense  of  bereavement.  He  had  realized  his 
friend  was  dead,  and  he  felt  that  this  might  fairly 
be  considered  the  better  fate.  But  somehow  the 
trivial  personal  belongings  so  bespoke  the  vanished 
presence  that  he  yearned  for  Demere  in  his  happy 
release;  the  shaken  nerves  could  respond  to  the 
echo  of  a  voice  forever  silenced;  he  could  look  into 
vacancy  upon  a  face  he  was  destined  to  see  never 
again.  His  jaded  faculties,  instead  of  reaching  for 
ward  to  the  terrible  future,  began  to  turn  back 
vaguely  to  the  details  of  their  long  service  to 
gether;  as  a  reflex  of  the  agitation  he  had  endured 
he  could  not,  in  the  surcease  of  turmoil,  compass  a 
quiet  mind;  he  began  to  experience  that  poignant 
anguish  of  bereavement,  self-reproach.  He  remem- 


364          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

bered  trifling  differences  they  had  had  in  the  life 
they  lived  here  like  brothers,  and  his  own  part  in 
them  gnawed  in  his  consciousness  like  a  grief;  he  re 
pented  him  of  words  long  ago  forgiven  ;  he  thought 
of  personal  vexations  that  he  might  have  sought  to 
smooth  away  but  carelessly* left  in  disregard ;  and 
when  he  lay  down  in  the  darkness  on  the  narrow 
camp-bed  with  his  friend's  pillow  under  his  head, 
Demere's  look  this  morning,  of  affectionate  banter, 
with  which  he  had  turned  on  the  ground  as  they 
lay  in  the  bivouac  was  so  present  to  his  mind 
that  the  tears  which  all  his  pains  and  griefs  were 
powerless  to  summon,  sprang  to  his  eyes. 

But  the  weary  physical  being  sunk  to  rest,  and 
then  in  the  midst  of  his  somnolent  mental  impres 
sions  was  wrought  a  change.  Demere  was  with 
him  still,  —  not  in  the  guise  of  that  white,  stark 
face,  upturned  now  to  the  stars  on  the  plains  of 
Taliquo,  —  but  in  his  serene,  staid  presence  as  he 
lived ;  together  they  were  at  Fort  Loudon,  consult 
ing,  planning,  as  in  its  happier  days  ;  now  it  was  the 
capacity  of  the  spring  which  they  wished  to  enlarge, 
and  this  they  had  done  with  blasting-powder ;  now 
it  was  the  device  to  add  to  the  comfort  of  the  garri 
son  by  framing  the  little  porches  that  stood  before 
the  doors  of  the  barracks ;  now  it  was  the  erection 
of  an  out-work  on  the  side  exposed  to  assault  by  the 
river,  and  they  were  marking  off  the  ravelin, — 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          365 

Corporal  O'Flynn  and  a  squad,  with  the  tapes, 
—  and  directing  the  fashioning  of  the  gabions,  the 
Indians  peacefully  sitting  by  the  while  like  some 
big,  unintelligent,  woodland  animals,  while  the 
great,  basket-like  frames  were  woven  of  white  oak 
splints  and  then  filled  with  the  solid  earth.  He 
was  trying  to  tell  Demere  that  he  was  afraid  some 
thing  would  happen  to  that  second  gun  in  the 
barbette  battery  on  the  northeast  bastion,  for  the 
metal  always  rang  with  a  queer  vibration,  and  he 
had  had  a  dream  that  Oconostota  had  overcharged 
and  fired  it,  and  it  had  exploded;  and  as  Demere 
was  laughing  at  this  folly  Stuart  realized  suddenly 
the  fact  that  the  day  was  coming  in  to  him  again 
there  in  his  friend's  place,  as  it  would  come  no 
more  to  Demere,  though  dawning  even  now  at 
Taliquo  Plains  where  he  lay.  Instead  of  that  es 
sential  presence,  on  which  Stuart  had  leaned  and 
relied,  and  which  in  turn  had  leaned  and  relied  on 
him,  there  was  in  his  mind  but  a  memory,  every 
day  to  grow  dimmer. 

Nevertheless,  he  rose,  refreshed  and  strengthened 
with  the  stimulus  of  that  unreal  association,  which 
was  yet  so  like  reality,  with  the  comrade  of  his 
dreams.  The  orderly  instincts  of  a  soldier,  as 
mechanical  as  the  functions  of  respiration,  enabled 
him,  with  the  use  of  fresh  linen  from  his  friend's 
relinquished  effects,  to  obliterate  the  traces  of  the 


366         The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

experiences  of  the  previous  day,  and  fresh  and  trim, 
with  that  precise  military  neatness  that  was  so  im 
posing  to  the  poor  Indian,  who  could  not  compass 
its  effect,  he  went  out  to  meet  the  half-king  with 
a  gait  assured  and  steady,  a  manner  capable  and 
confident,  and  an  air  of  executive  ability,  that  bade 
fair  for  the  success  of  any  scheme  to  which  he 
might  lend  his  aid. 

Now  and  again  he  marked  a  glance  of  deep 
appreciation  from  the  subtle  Atta-Kulla-Kulla,18  the 
result  of  much  cogitation  and  effort  at  mental 
appraisement.  He  feared  that  important  develop 
ments  were  to  ensue,  and  after  breakfast,  at  which 
meal  he  was  treated  like  a  guest  and  an  equal,  and 
not  in  the  capacity  of  slave,  as  were  most  captives, 
his  host  notified  him  that  his  presence  would  be 
necessary  at  a  council  to  be  held  at  Chote. 

Too  acute,  far  too  acute  was  Atta-Kulla-Kulla 
not  to  recognize  and  comment  upon  the  different 
aspect  of  life  at  Fort  Loudon.  "The  red  man 
cannot,  without  use,  become  capable  of  handling 
the  advantages  of  the  white  man,"  he  said  in  ex 
cuse  of  the  anarchy  everywhere,  with  all  the  riot 
and  grotesqueness  and  discomfort  incident  to  being 
out  of  one's  sphere.  At  Chote  the  Cherokees  would 
have  seemed  as  easy,  as  appropriate,  as  graceful,  as 
native  as  the  deer. 

And  at  Chote  Oconostota  seemed  as   native  as 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          367 

the  fox.  There  he  sat  on  the  great  buffalo  rugs, 
even  his  faculties  much  more  at  command  in  his 
wonted  place,  under  the  dusky  red  walls  of  the 
clay-daubed  dome  of  the  council-chamber.  And 
there  Captain  Stuart  learned  the  reason  of  the 
Cherokee  king's  interference  yesterday  to  postpone 
his  fate. 

For  Oconostota  had  evolved  the  bold  project  of 
the  reduction  of  Fort  Prince  George.  This  would 
consummate  the  triumph  of  the  fall  of  Fort  Loudon, 
rid  the  greater  portion  of  the  Cherokee  country 
of  the  presence  of  the  English,  and,  with  their 
strongholds  in  the  hands  of  the  Indians,  reinforced 
by  a  few  French  gunners,  prevent  them  from  ever 
renewing  foothold.  The  powder  left  by  Stuart  he 
had  found,  in  experimenting  with  the  guns,  was  not 
enough  for  a  siege,  but  with  the  discovery  of  the 
ten  extra  bags,  the  supply  would  prove  most  ample. 
The  ammunition,  together  with  the  guns,  was  to  be 
at  once  removed  and  transported  thither,  laborious 
though  it  might  prove. 

Stuart  attempted  to  set  forth  the  great  difficulties 
of  the  undertaking,  but  was  met  at  every  point  by 
the  foresight  and  ingenuity  of  Oconostota,  who 
had  considered  evidently  each  detail.  It  was  plain 
that  the  project  was  feasible,  for  the  Indian,  too 
lazy  in  peace  to  hoe  a  row  of  beans,  is  capable  in 
war  of  prodigies  of  valorous  industry.  Stuart  began 


368          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

to  feel  singularly  placed,  since  he  did  not  perceive 
in  this  his  personal  concern,  to  be  thus  admitted  to 
a  council  of  war  with  the  enemy.  The  affability  of 
Oconostota  he  knew  was  insincere,  but  being  in  the 
Cherokee  king's  power  the  fraud  of  his  amiability 
was  more  acceptable  than  the  ferocity  of  his  candor. 

u  You  will  accompany  the  expedition,"  said  the 
king  of  the  Cherokees,  suavely. 

"  In  what  capacity  ?  "  Stuart  asked,  also  politic, 
seeking  to  disguise  his  anxiety,  for  any  hesitation 
or  refusal  would  renew  his  straits  of  yesterday, 
Atta-Kulla-Kulla  being  as  eager,  as  capable,  and 
even  more  subtle  in  planning  the  campaign  than 
Oconostota. 

"You  will  write  the  letters  to  the  commandant 
of  Fort  Prince  George,  summoning  him  in  our 
names  to  surrender,  and"  —  with  a  twinkle  of  the 
eye  —  "advising  him  in  your  own  name  to  comply." 

Stuart  bowed  in  bland  acquiescence.  "  And  the 
commandant  will  find  it  very  easy  reading  between 
the  lines  of  any  letters  I  shall  write  him,"  he  said 
to  himself. 

Nevertheless,  he  still  sought  to  dissuade  them. 
In  ignorance  of  the  state  of  the  defenses  at  Fort 
Prince  George,  the  strength  of  the  works,  the 
supply  of  ammunition  and  provisions,  the  difficulties 
that  might  have  arisen  in  communicating  with 
Charlestown,  he  sought  to  avert  the  dangers  of  a 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          369 

siege  and  a  possible  ultimate  disaster  such  as  had 
befallen  Fort  Loudon.  But  although  he  spoke 
with  force  and  readiness  it  was  very  guardedly. 

"  If  the  great  Cherokee  kings  would  please  to 
consider  the  experience  which  I  have  had  in  the 
management  of  cannon,  I  should  like  to  represent 
that  such  an  attack  on  Fort  Prince  George  can  but 
be  a  duel  with  artillery.  I  am  not  well  acquainted 
with  the  armament  of  Fort  Prince  George,"  he 
declared,  "  but  it  may  well  chance  that  the  cannon, 
captured  by  the  Cherokees  at  so  great  a  cost,  may 
be  disabled  under  a  heavy  fire  and  lost  to  Fort 
Loudon,  which  would  then  become  mere  intrench- 
ments,  to  be  leveled  by  a  single  brisk  cannonade." 

Atta-Kulla-Kulla,  his  quick,  keen,  fiery  face 
aglow,  informed  him  that  they  would  leave  a 
reserve  of  cannon  at  Fort  Loudon,  his  advice 
having  been  to  take  with  them  only  six  of  the 
great  guns  and  two  coehorns. 

Stuart  was  baffled  for  a  moment  by  the  definite- 
ness  and  the  military  coherence  of  these  plans. 
He  rallied,  however,  to  say  that  the  gunners  of 
Fort  Prince  George  were  trained  men,  doubtless, 
and  drilled  with  frequent  target  practice.  And  a 
commander  of  skill,  such  as  theirs,  was  essential  to 
the  effectiveness  of  an  aggressive  demonstration. 

A  flicker  of  triumph  illuminated  Atta-Kulla- 
Kulla's  spirited  face.  They  were  provided  in  this 


370          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

emergency  also.  He,  the  great  Captain  Stuart, 
would  command  the  artillery  of  the  expedition,  the 
guns  to  be  served  by  Indians  as  cannoneers  under 
his  direction ;  nicety  of  aim  was  not  essential ;  a 
few  days'  practice  would  suffice,  and  at  short  range 
Fort  Prince  George  was  a  large  target. 

For  his  life  Stuart  could  not  control  his  counte 
nance  ;  the  color  flared  to  the  roots  of  his  hair ;  his 
eyes  flashed;  his  hand  trembled;  he  could  not  find 
his  voice;  and  yet  angry  as  he  was,  he  was  both 
amazed  and  daunted. 

Oconostota  broke  in  upon  his  speechless  agita 
tion  in  a  smooth,  soothing  voice  to  remind  him  of 
the  clemency  he  enjoyed  in  that  his  life  had  been 
spared,  and  only  yesterday,  even  at  the  supreme 
moment  of  the  discovery  of  the  treachery  of  his 
garrison  in  the  concealment  of  the  powder.  They 
had  not  acquainted  Willinawaugh  with  their  designs, 
for  Oconostota  himself  would  lead  the  expedition. 
(Stuart  as  a  military  man  realized  a  necessity,  that 
sometimes  supervenes  in  more  sophisticated  organi 
zations,  which  they  felt  of  curbing  the  power  of  a 
possibly  too  successful  and  a  too  aspiring  sub 
ordinate.)  How  generous,  declared  Oconostota, 
had  been  the  intercession  of  the  noble  Atta- 
Kulla-Kulla,  —  half-king  of  the  Cherokees,  —  who 
had  given  in  effect  all  his  wealth  to  ransom 
him,  a  mere  eeankke,  a  prisoner,  from  his  warlike 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London          371 

captor,  the  great  Willinawaugh,  that  this  military 
service  might  be  rendered  in  exchange  for  his  life. 

Stuart's  eyes  turned  away;  he  sought  to  veil 
their  expression  ;  he  looked  through  the  tall  nar 
row  door  of  the  red  clay  walls  at  the  waters  of 
the  Tennessee  River,  silver-shotted  and  blue  as 
ever,  still  flowing  down  and  down  beyond  the  site 
of  Fort  Loudon  —  unmindful  of  its  tragic  fate,  un 
mindful  !  The  august  domes  of  the  Great  Smoky 
Mountains  showed  now  a  dull  velvet  blue  against 
the  hard  blue  of  the  turquoise  sky,  and  anon  drew  a 
silver  shimmer  of  mists  about  them.  Chilhowee 
Mountain,  richly  bronze  and  green,  rose  in  the 
middle  distance,  and  he  was  vaguely  reminiscent  of 
the  day  when  he  watched  the  young  soldier  rocking 
in  his  boat  on  the  shallows  close  to  the  shore,  the 
red  coat  giving  a  bright  spot  of  color  to  the  har 
monious  duller  tones  of  the  landscape,  and  wondered 
were  it  possible  among  these  friendly  people  that 
the  lad  could  be  in  danger  of  a  stealthy  rifle  shot. 
Now  there  were  no  red  coats,  —  nevermore  were 
they  to  be  seen  here!  Between  himself  and  the 
water  he  watched  only  the  white  swaying  of  a 
tall  cluster  of  the  great  ethereally  delicate  snowy 
blossoms,  since  known  as  the  Chilhowee  lily. 

He  kept  his  eyes  still  averted,  his  voice  deepen 
ing  with  the  seriousness  of  his  sentiment  as  he 
replied  that  this  was  impossible  —  he  could  not 


372          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

undertake  the  command  of  the  Cherokee  artillery 
against  Fort  Prince  George  ;  he  was  bound  by  his 
oath  of  fidelity  which  he  had  sworn  to  the  English 
government;  he  could  not  bear  arms  against  it. 

A  choking  chuckle  recalled  his  gaze  to  the  dusky 
red  interior  of  the  council-chamber.  Oconostota's 
countenance  was  distorted  with  derision,  and  his 
twinkling  eyes  were  swimming  in  the  tears  of  the 
infrequent  laughter  of  the  grave  Indian  —  even 
Atta-Kulla-Kulla's  face  wore  a  protesting  smile  of 
scorn  as  of  a  folly. 

Twice  Oconostota  sought  to  speak,  and  he  sput 
tered,  and  choked,  and  could  not,  for  his  relish  of 
the  thought  in  his  mind.  Then  with  a  deep  mock- 
seriousness  he  demanded  slowly  if  it  were  fireproof. 
And  relapsed  into  his  shaking  chuckle. 

"  What  ?  "  demanded  Stuart,  uncomprehending. 

"This  oath  of  yours  —  to  the  English  govern 
ment.  Does  this  fidelity  so  clothe  your  body  that 
it  will  not  burn  and  crisp  and  crinkle  in  the  anguish 
as  of  your  hell  ?  Does  your  oath  harden  your  flesh 
as  a  rock,  that  arrows  and  knives  shall  not  pierce  it 
and  sting  and  ache  as  they  stick  there  waiting  for 
the  slow  fires  to  do  their  work  ?  Will  your  oath 
restore  sight  to  your  eyes  when  a  red-hot  iron  has 
seared  them  ?  "  He  could  say  no  more  for  the 
chuckling  delight  that  shook  and  shook  his  lean  old 
body. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          373 

Atta-Kulla-Kulla  spoke  in  reproach.  The  Cher 
okee  kings  had  offered  Captain  Stuart  life  and  prac 
tically  liberty  in  exchange  for  this  service.  If  he 
denied  it  and  talked  of  his  oath,  it  was  but  just  that 
vengeance  should  take  its  way.  Many  a  Cherokee 
had  fallen  dead  from  the  fire  of  his  garrison  of 
Loudon,  both  of  great  guns  and  small,  and  their 
blood  called  still  from  the  ground.  A  wise  man 
was  Captain  Stuart,  and  he  would  choose  wisely. 

He  was  a  hearty  man,  still  young,  and  in  full 
vigor,  and,  although  his  life  had  been  but  little 
worth  of  late,  he  was  loath  to  throw  it  away. 

He  began  to  temporize,  to  try  to  gain  time.  He 
sought  to  talk  discontentedly  of  the  project,  as  if 
he  found  it  infeasible.  The  commandant,  he  said, 
as  if  he  contemplated  him  only  as  the  leader  of  an 
opposing  force,  would  fight  at  an  infinite  advantage 
within  the  strong  defenses  of  Fort  Prince  George, 
while  he  outside,  without  intrenchments  except  such 
hasty  works  as  could  be  thrown  up  in  a  night,  and 
beaten  down  by  the  enemy's  cannonade  in  the 
morning,  could  but  expect  to  have  his  guns  soon 
silenced.  A  regular  approach  would  be  impracti 
cable.  The  Indians  were  not  used  to  fight  un 
screened.  They  would  never  open  a  parallel  under 
fire,  and  a  vigilant  defense  would  make  havoc 
among  the  working  parties. 

He  noted  the   effect  of  the  unfamiliar  military 


374          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

theories  upon  the  Indians,  as  they  both  seemed 
to  anxiously  canvass  them. 

"  You  cannot  skulk  behind  a  tree  with  cannon/' 
he  continued.  "  The  artillery,  to  be  able  to  com 
mand  the  fort  with  its  fire,  would  be  within  range 
of  the  enemy's  batteries,  and  without  efficient  cover 
it  would  be  necessary,  in  serving  each  piece,  for  the 
gunners  to  be  exposed  to  fire  all  the  time." 

An  interval  of  deep,  pondering  silence  ensued. 
At  length  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  said  he  believed  there 
would  be  little  or  no  fight  on  account  of  the  pris 
oners. 

"  What  prisoners  ?  "  demanded  Stuart,  shortly. 

Then  Oconostota  explained,  with  his  blandest 
circumlocutions,  that,  partly  as  a  check  upon  his 
dear  brother's  good  faith,  bound  as  he  was  by  his 
oath  of  fidelity  to  the  English  government,  —  and 
he  almost  choked  with  the  relish  of  his  derision 
every  time  he  mentioned  it,  —  and  to  make  sure 
that  he  should  handle  the  guns  properly,  and  fire 
them  with  due  effect,  —  not  aiming  them  wildly,  so 
that  the  balls  might  fly  over  the  fort,  or  fall  short, 
not  spiking  the  guns,  or  otherwise  demolishing 
them,  all  of  which  his  great  knowledge  of  the  arm 
rendered  possible,  and  the  ignorance  of  the  poor 
red  man  unpreventable,  they  had  determined  to 
take  with  them  the  remnant  of  the  garrison,  their 
lives  to  be  pledges  of  his  good  conduct  and  effective 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon         375 

marksmanship ;  and  if  at  last  his  earnest  and  sincere 
efforts  should  prove  unavailing,  and  the  commandant 
should  continue  to  hold  out  and  refuse  to  surrender 
when  finally  summoned,  these,  the  countrymen  and 
fellow-soldiers  of  that  officer,  should  be  singly  tor 
tured  and  burned  before  his  eyes,  within  full  sight 
and  hearing  of  Fort  Prince  George. 

As  the  fiendish  ingenuity  of  this  scheme  was  grad 
ually  unfolded,  Stuart  sat  stunned.  All  the  anguish 
he  had  suffered  seemed  naught  to  this  prospect. 
He  staggered  under  the  weight  of  responsibility. 
The  lives  of  the  poor  remnant  of  his  garrison, — 
more,  their  death  by  fire  and  torture,  —  hung  upon 
such  discretion  as  he  could  summon  to  aid  his  ex 
hausted  powers  in  these  repeated  and  tormented 
ordeals.  He  said  nothing  ;  he  could  not  see  and 
he  did  not  care  for  the  succession  of  chuckles  in 
which  Oconostota  was  resolved  at  the  delightful 
spectacle  of  his  dismay.  The  Cherokee  had  beaten 
this  man  of  resource  at  his  little  game  of  war,  and 
now  had  outmaneuvered  him  at  his  mastercraft  of 
scheming ! 


CHAPTER   XIII 

STUART  seemed  utterly  vanquished  —  his 
spirit  gone.  In  silence  he  was  conducted 
back  to  his  quarters  in  Demere's  house  at 
Fort  Loudon.  And  as  there  he  sat  in  the  spare, 
clean  room,  in  the  single  chair  it  contained, 
with  one  elbow  on  the  queer,  rough  little  table, 
constructed  according  to  a  primitive  scheme  by 
the  post  carpenter,  he  stared  forward  blankly  at 
the  inevitable  prospect  so  close  before  him.  He 
had  not  now  the  solace  of  solitude  in  which  he 
might  have  rallied  his  faculties.  On  the  buffalo 
rug  on  the  floor  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  reclined  and 
smoked  his  long-stemmed  pipe  and  watched  him 
with  impenetrable  eyes.  Once  he  spoke  to  him  of 
the  preparations  making  without,  selecting  the  men 
for  the  gunners  of  the  expedition.  Stuart  lifted  his 
head  abruptly. 

"  I  will  not  go  !  "  he  cried  in  sudden  passion. 
"  So  help  me,  God  !  I  will  die  first !  —  a  thousand 
deaths.  So  help  me,  God ! "  He  lifted  his 
clinched  right  hand  in  attestation  and  shook  it 
wildly  in  the  air. 

He  had  a  momentary  shame  in  thus  giving  way 

376 


He  stared  forward  blankly  at  the  inevitable  prospect." 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          377 

to  his  surcharged  feelings,  but  as  he  rose  mechani 
cally  from  his  chair  his  restless  eyes,  glancing 
excitedly  about  the  room,  surprised  an  expression 
of  sympathy  in  the  face  of  the  Cherokee  as  he  lay 
coiled  up  on  the  rug. 

"  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  !  "  Stuart  exclaimed  impul 
sively,  holding  out  both  arms,  "  feel  for  me  ! 
Think  of  me !  The  poor  remnant  of  the  garrison  ! 
My  c  young  men  ' !  My  own  command  !  I  will 
die  first,  myself,  a  thousand  deaths ! " 

Atta-Kulla-Kulla  began  to  argue,  speaking  partly 
in  Cherokee  and  now  and  again  in  fragmentary 
English.  Neither  the  one  nor  the  other  might 
be  the  victim.  The  commandant  at  Fort  Prince 
George  would  yield  under  this  strong  coercion. 

"  Never  !  Never  !  "  cried  Stuart.  "  His  duty  is 
to  hold  the  fort.  He  will  defend  it  to  the  last  man 
and  the  last  round  of  ammunition  and  the  last 
issuance  of  rations.  For  his  countrymen  to  be 
tortured  and  burned  in  his  sight  and  hearing  would 
doubtless  give  him  great  pain.  But  his  duty  is 
to  his  own  command,  and  he  will  do  it.'* 

Atta-Kulla-Kulla  seemed  doubtful.  "And  then," 
argued  Stuart,  "  would  such  torturing  and  burning 
of  the  surrendered  garrison  of  Fort  Loudon  before 
the  eyes  of  the  garrison  of  Fort  Prince  George  be 
an  inducement  to  them  to  surrender  too,  and 
perhaps  meet  the  same  fate  ?  Be  sure  they  will 


378          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

sell  their  lives  more  dearly !  Be  sure  they  will 
have  heard  of  the  massacre  of  the  soldiers  under 
the  Cherokees'  pledge  of  safe-conduct  on  the  plains 
of  Taliquo." 

"  To-e-u-bab  !  "  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  broke  out  furi 
ously.  "  To-e-u-bab  !  It  is  most  true  !  " 

His  countenance  had  changed  to  extreme  anger. 
He  launched  out  into  a  bitter  protest  that  he  had 
always  contemned,  and  deprecated,  and  sought  to 
prevent  this  continual  violation  of  their  plighted 
word  and  the  obligations  of  their  treaties  on  the 
part  of  the  Cherokee  nation.  It  invariably  ham 
pered  their  efforts  afterward,  as  it  was  hampering 
them  now.  It  took  from  their  hand  the  tool  of 
negotiation,  the  weapon  of  the  head-men,  and  left 
only  the  tomahawk,  the  brute  force  of  the  tribe. 
Wabkant)  wabkane !  Was  it  not  so  when  the 
treaty  of  Lyttleton  was  broken  and  Montgomery, 
the  Terrible,  came  in  his  stead  ?  And  when  the 
Cherokees  had  driven  him  out,  and  had  taken  their 
revenge  on  him  for  the  blood  which  had  been  shed 
in  his  first  foray,  of  what  avail  to  massacre  the 
garrison  evacuating  Fort  Loudon,  the  possession  of 
which  had  been  for  so  long  a  coveted  boon,  and 
thus  preclude  a  peaceful  rendering  of  Fort  Prince 
George  and  the  expulsion  of  all  English  soldiery 
from  Cherokee  soil ! 

Stuart,  cautiously   reticent,  let   him   dilate   upon 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          379 

all  the  wrongs  wrought  in  council  by  the  disregard 
of  his  advice,  only  now  and  again  dropping  a  word 
as  fuel  to  the  flame.  Cautiously,  too,  he  led  to  the 
topic  of  the  regard  and  the  admiration  which  the 
acute  mind  and  the  more  enlightened  moral  senti 
ment  of  this  chief  had  excited  in  the  English 
authorities,  and  the  service  this  official  esteem 
would  have  been  to  the  headstrong  nation  if  they 
had  availed  themselves  of  it.  For  was  not  Mont 
gomery  instructed  to  offer  them  terms  on  bis  ac 
count  only  ?  Their  cruelty  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  was 
brought  to  perceive  had  despoiled  them  of  the  fruits 
of  their  victory ;  they  might  have,  for  all  their 
patience  and  all  their  valor,  and  all  their  statecraft, 
only  a  few  more  scalps  here  and  there ;  for  presently 
the  great  English  nation  would  be  pressing  again 
from  the  south,  with  Fort  Prince  George  as  a  base, 
and  the  war  would  be  to  begin  anew. 

Deep  into  the  night  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  dwelt  on  the 
treachery  toward  him,  —  for  he  had  known  naught 
of  the  enterprise  of  the  massacre  —  that  had  so 
metamorphosed  victory  into  disaster.  The  moon 
light  was  coming  in  at  the  window,  reminding  Stuart 
of  that  night  when  he  lay  at  length  on  the  rug  and 
consulted  with  Demere  and  anxiously  foreboded 
events,  the  news  of  Montgomery's  departure  from 
the  country  having  fallen  upon  them  like  a  crushing 
blow.  How  prescient  of  disaster  they  had  felt  — 


380          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

but  how  little  they  had  appraised  its  force  !  Paler 
now  was  the  moon,  more  melancholy,  desolate  to  the 
last  degree  as  it  glimmered  on  the  white-washed  walls 
of  the  bare,  sparely  furnished  room.  His  attention 
had  relaxed  with  fatigue  as  he  still  sat  with  his  elbow 
on  the  table,  his  head  on  his  hand,  vaguely  hearing 
the  Indian  councillor  droning  out  his  griefs  of  disre 
garded  statesmanship  and  of  the  preferable  attitude 
of  affairs,  so  rudely,  so  disastrously  altered.  Sud 
denly  his  tone  changed  to  a  personal  note. 

"  But  it  was  ill  with  you,  starving  with  your  young 
men,  in  this  place  —  long  days,  heap  hungry." 

"  They  seem  happy  days,  now,"  said  Stuart 
drearily,  rousing  himself. 

"  And  to-morrow  —  and  yet  next  day  ?  "  asked 
Atta-Kulla-Kulla. 

Stuart  stirred  uneasily.  "  I  can  only  die  with 
what  grace  and  courage  I  can  muster,"  he  said  re 
luctantly.  He  glanced  about  him  with  restless  eyes, 
like  a  hunted  creature.  "  I  cannot  escape." 

He  looked  up  in  sudden  surprise.  The  Indian 
was  standing  now,  gazing  down  at  him  with  a 
benignity  of  expression  which  warranted  the  charac 
ter  of  bold  and  forceful  mind,  and  broad  and  even 
humane  disposition,  which  this  Cherokee  had  won 
of  his  enemies  in  the  midst  of  the  bloodshed  and 
the  treachery  and  the  hideous  cruelty  of  the  warfare 
in  which  he  was  so  much  concerned. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          381 

"  John  Stuart,"  he  said,  "  have  I  not  called  you 
my  friend  ?  Have  I  not  given  all  I  possess  of 
wealth  to  save  your  life  ?  Do  I  not  value  it,  and 
yet  it  is  yours  !  " 

Stuart  had  forgotten  the  chief's  words  that  Christ 
mas  night  at  the  great  gates,  but  they  came  back  to 
him  as  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  repeated  them,  anew. 

"  I  know  your  heart,  and  I  do  not  always  forget ! 
I  do  not  always  forget !  " 

In  Stuart's  amazement,  in  the  abrupt  reaction,  he 
could  hardly  master  the  details  of  the  unfolded  plan. 
The  Cherokee  declared  he  had  made  up  his  mind 
to  a  stratagem,  such  as  might  baffle  even  the  designs 
of  Oconostota.  He  doubted  his  own  power  to  pro 
tect  his  prisoner,  should  the  king  learn  that  Stuart 
still  refused  his  services  in  the  expedition  to  Fort 
Prince  George.  Oconostota's  heart  was  set  upon 
the  reduction  of  this  stronghold,  and  so  was  that  of 
all  the  Cherokee  nation.  And  yet  Atta-Kulla-Kulla 
could  but  perceive  the  flagrant  futility  of  the  ex 
pectation  of  the  surrender  of  the  garrison  on  the 
coercion  that  Oconostota  had  devised,  especially 
as  Fort  Prince  George  was  so  much  nearer  than 
Fort  Loudon  to  communication  with  the  white 
settlements.  "  I  contemplate  the  fact  before  it 
happens,  they  only  afterward,"  he  said. 

On  the  pretext  of  diverting  Stuart's  mind  after 
his  glut  of  horrors,  and  in  affording  him  this  recrea- 


382          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

tion  to  secure  an  influence  over  him,  eminently  in 
character  with  the  wiles  of  the  Cherokee  statesman, 
he  gave  out  that  he  intended  to  take  his  prisoner 
with  him  for  a  few  days  on  a  hunting  expedition. 
The  deer  were  now  in  prime  condition,  and  Captain 
Stuart  was  known  by  the  Indians  to  be  specially 
fond  of  venison.  In  the  old  days  at  Fort  Loudon 
they  had  often  taken  note  of  this  preference,  and 
stopped  there  to  leave  as  a  gift  a  choice  haunch,  or 
saddle,  or  to  crave  the  privilege  of  nailing  a  gigantic 
pair  of  antlers  to  vie  with  the  others  on  the  walls 
of  the  great  hall.  Stuart  himself  was  a  famous  shot, 
and  was  often  called  by  them  in  compliment  A-wah- 
ta-bow-we,  the  "  great  deer-killer.'*  The  project 
created  no  surprise,  and  Stuart  saw  with  amazement 
the  door  of  his  prison  ajar.  One  might  have  thought 
in  such  a  crisis  of  deliverance  no  other  consideration 
could  appeal  to  him.  But  his  attachment  to  the 
British  interest  seems  to  have  been  like  the  marrow 
in  his  bones.  He  demanded  of  Atta-Kulla-Kulla 
the  privilege  of  being  accompanied  by  two  men  of 
the  garrison  of  his  own  choice. 

The  chief  cast  upon  him  a  look  of  deep  reproach. 
Did  he  fear  treachery  ?  Had  his  friend,  his  brother, 
deserved  this  ? 

"  I  ask  much  of  a  friend  —  nothing  of  an  enemy," 
declared  Stuart,  bluffly.  "  You  know  my  heart  — 
trust  me." 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London         383 

Atta-Kulla-Kulla  yielded.  If  he  experienced  curi 
osity,  the  names  of  the  two  men  which  Stuart  gave 
him  afforded  no  clue  as  to  the  reason  for  their  selec 
tion  ;  one  was  a  gun-smith,  an  armorer  of  uncommon 
skill,  and  Stuart  knew  that  he  was  capable  of  dis 
mounting  and  removing  the  cannon,  without  injury, 
through  the  tangled  wilderness  to  Fort  Prince 
George,  should  coercion  overcome  his  resistance  to 
the  demands  of  the  savages ;  the  other,  an  artillery 
man  of  long  experience  and  much  intelligence,  him 
self  adequately  fitted  to  take  command  of  the  guns 
of  the  expedition,  with  a  good  chance  of  a  successful 
issue.  The  massacre  had  swept  away  most  of  the 
cannoneers,  and  Stuart  was  aware  that  the  infantry 
men  left  of  the  garrison  would  be  hardly  more  capable 
of  dealing  with  the  problems  of  gun  service  than  was 
Oconostota,  their  careless  and  casual  observation 
being  worth  little  more  than  his  earnest,  but  dense 
ignorance.  Nevertheless,  with  his  exacting  insistence 
on  the  extreme  limit  of  demand,  he  begged  Atta- 
Kulla-Kulla,  whose  patience  was  wearing  danger 
ously  thin,  to  let  him  see  them,  speak  to  them  for 
one  moment." 

"  You  can  hear  all  I  say  —  you  who  understand 
the  English  so  well.'* 

As  he  stepped  into  the  old  exhausted  store-room, 
where  the  soldiers  were  herded  together,  squalid, 
heart-broken,  ill,  forlorn,  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  outside 


384          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

closing  the  door  fast,  a  quavering  cheer  went  up  to 
greet  Stuart.  For  one  moment  he  stood  silent  while 
their  eyes  met  —  a  moment  fraught  with  feeling  too 
deep  for  words.  Then  his  voice  rang  out  and  he 
spoke  to  the  point.  He  wanted  to  remind  them,  he 
said,  how  the  action  of  the  garrison  had  forced  the  sur 
render  and  left  the  officers  no  choice,  no  discretion ; 
however  the  event  would  have  fallen  out,  it  would 
not  have  happened  thus.  "  But  I  did  not  come 
here  to  mock  your  distress,"  he  protested.  "  I 
wish  to  urge  you  to  rely  upon  me  now.  I  have 
hopes  of  securing  the  ransom  of  the  garrison  by  the 
government,"  —  again  a  pitiful  cheer,  —  "  and  as  I 
may  never  be  allowed  to  see  you  again  this  is  my 
only  chance.  Be  sure  of  this,  —  no  man  need  hope 
for  ransom  who  affords  the  Cherokees  the  slightest 
assistance  in  any  enterprise  against  Fort  Prince 
George,  or  takes  up  arms  at  their  command." 

He  smiled,  and  waved  his  hat  in  courteous  fare 
well,  and  stepped  backward  out  of  the  door,  ap 
parently  guarded  by  Atta-Kulla-Kulla,  while  that 
quavering  huzza  went  up  anew,  the  very  sound 
almost  breaking  down  his  self-control. 

The  next  day  Stuart,  accompanied  by  Atta-Kulla- 
Kulla,  the  warrior's  wife,  his  brother,  the  armorer, 
and  the  artillery-man,  —  the  supposititious  hunting 
party,  —  set  gayly  and  leisurely  forth.  But  once 
out  of  reach  of  espionage  they  traveled  in  a  north- 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          385 

eastern  direction  with  the  utmost  expedition  night 
and  day  through  the  trackless  wilderness,  guided 
only  by  the  sun  and  moon.  What  terrors  of  cap 
ture,  what  hardships  of  fatigue,  what  anxious  doubt 
and  anguish  of  hope  they  endured,  but  added  wings 
to  the  flight  of  the  unhappy  fugitives.  Nine  days  and 
nights  they  journeyed  thus,  hardly  relaxing  a  muscle. 

On  the  tenth  day,  having  gained  the  frontiers  of 
Virginia,  they  fortunately  fell  in  with  a  party  of  three 
hundred  men,  a  part  of  Bird's  Virginia  regiment, 
thrown  out  for  the  relief  of  any  soldiers  who  might 
be  escaping  in  the  direction  of  that  province  from 
Fort  Loudon,  for  through  Hamish's  dispatches  its 
state  of  blockade  and  straits  of  starvation  had 
become  widely  bruited  abroad.  With  the  succor 
thus  afforded  and  the  terror  of  capture  overpast,  the 
four  days'  further  travel  were  accomplished  in  com 
parative  ease,  and  brought  the  fugitives  to  Colonel 
Bird's  camp,  within  the  boundaries  of  Virginia. 

Here  Stuart  parted  from  Atta-Kulla-Kulla,  with 
many  a  protestation  and  many  a  regret,  and  many 
an  urgent  prayer  that  the  chief  would  protect  such 
of  the  unhappy  garrison  as  were  still  imprisoned 
at  Fort  Loudon  until  they  could  be  ransomed, 
measures  for  which  Stuart  intended  to  set  on  foot 
immediately.  So  the  half-king  of  the  Cherokees 
went  his  way  back  to  his  native  wilds,  loaded  by 
Stuart  with  presents  and  commendations,  and  in 


386          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

no  wise  regretting  the  radical  course  he  had  taken.14 
Stuart  had  instantly  sent  off  messengers  to  apprise 
the  commandant  of  Fort  Prince  George  of  the 
threatened  attack,  and  to  acquaint  the  governor  of 
South  Carolina  with  the  imminence  of  its  danger 
and  the  fall  of  Fort  Loudon,  for  Governor  Bull 
had  expected  Virginia  to  raise  the  siege  of  Loudon, 
unaware  that  that  province  had  dropped  all  thought 
of  the  attempt,  rinding  its  means  utterly  inadequate 
to  march  an  army  thither  through  those  vast  and 
tangled  wildernesses  carrying  the  necessary  supplies 
for  its  own  subsistence.  Provisions  for  ten  weeks 
were  at  once  thrown  into  Fort  Prince  George,  and 
a  report  was  industriously  circulated  among  the 
Indians  that  the  ground  about  it  on  every  side 
had  been  craftily  mined  to  prevent  approach.15 

Stuart  found  that  Hamish  MacLeod,  after  per 
forming  his  mission  and  setting  out  for  his  return  to 
the  beleaguered  fort  with  the  responsive  dispatches, 
had  succumbed  to  the  extreme  hardship  of  those 
continuous  journeys  throughout  the  wild  fastnesses, 
many  hundred  miles  of  which  were  traversed  on 
foot  and  at  full  speed  under  a  blazing  summer 
sun,  and  lay  ill  of  brain-fever  at  one  of  the  frontier 
settlements.  There  Stuart  saw  him — still  so  delir 
ious  that,  although  recognizing  the  officer  in  some 
sort,  he  talked  wildly  of  pressing  dispatches,  of  the 
inattention  and  callous  hearts  of  officials  in  high 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          387 

station,  of  delays  and  long  waitings  for  audience  in 
official  anterooms,  of  the  prospect  of  any  expedi 
tion  of  relief  for  the  fort,  of  Odalie,  and  red 
calashes,  and  Savanukah,  and  rifle-shots,  and  Fifine, 
and  "top-feathers,"  and  Sandy  —  Sandy  —  Sandy; 
always  Sandy ! 

Later,  Stuart  was  apprised  that  the  boy  was  on  the 
way  to  recovery  when  he  received  a  coherent  letter 
from  Hamish,  who  had  learned  that  Stuart  was  using 
every  endeavor  —  moving  heaven  and  earth  as  the 
phrase  went  —  to  compass  the  ransom  of  the  sur 
vivors  of  the  garrison  still  at  Fort  Loudon  or 
the  Indian  villages  in  its  neighborhood.  Hamish 
had  heard  of  the  fall  of  the  fort  and  the  mas 
sacre  of  the  evacuating  force,  and  still  staggering 
under  the  weight  of  the  blow,  he  reminded  Stuart 
peremptorily  enough  of  the  services  which  Odalie 
had  rendered  in  venturing  forth  from  the  walls 
under  the  officer's  orders,  when  he  dared  not  seek 
to  induce  a  man  to  volunteer  nor  constrain  one  to 
the  duty,  and  to  urge  upon  his  consideration  the 
fact  that  she  might  be  justly  esteemed  to  have 
earned  her  ransom  and  that  of  her  husband  and 
child.  Hamish  had  an  immediate  reply  by  a  sure 
hand. 

If  it  could  avail  aught  to  Mrs.  MacLeod  or  any 
of  her  household,  Stuart  wrote  with  an  uncharac 
teristic  vehemence  of  protest,  every  influence  he 


j88          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

could  exert,  every  half-penny  he  possessed,  every 
drop  of  his  blood  would  be  cheerfully  devoted  to 
the  service,  so  highly  did  he  rate  the  lofty  courage 
which  had  given  to  Fort  Loudon  its  only  chance 
of  relief,  and  which  under  happier  auspices  would 
undoubtedly  have  resulted  in  raising  the  siege. 
Whatever  might  be  forgotten,  assuredly  it  would 
not  be  the  intrepid  devotion  of  the  "  forlorn  hope  " 
of  Fort  Loudon. 

Hamish,  left  to  his  own  not  overwise  devices, 
decided  to  return  to  the  country  where  he  had  quitted 
all  that  was  dear  to  him,  dangerous  though  that  return 
might  be.  And,  indeed,  those  wild  western  woods 
included  the  boundaries  of  all  the  world  to  him  — 
elsewhere  he  felt  alone  and  an  alien.  It  seemed 
strange  to  realize  that  there  were  other  people,  other 
interests,  other  happenings  of  moment.  He  long 
remembered  the  sensation,  and  was  wont  to  tell 
of  it  afterward,  with  which  he  discovered,  camping 
one  night  at  the  foot  of  a  tree  —  for  he  journeyed 
now  by  easy  stages,  keeping  sedulously  from  the 
main  trail  through  the  forest  —  the  traces  of  a  pre 
vious  presence,  a  bit  of  writing  cut  on  the  bark  of 
the  tree.  "  Daniel  Boon,"  it  ran,  "  cilled  a  bar  on 
tree  in  the  year  1760." 

That  momentous  year  —  that  crucial  time  of 
endeavor  and  fluctuating  hope  and  despair  and 
death  —  a  hunter  here,  all  unaware  of  the  maelstrom 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          389 

of  mental  and  physical  agony  away  there  to  the 
south  in  the  shadow  of  the  same  mountain  range, 
was  pursuing  his  quiet  sylvan  craft,  and  slaughtering 
his  "  bar "  and  the  alphabet  with  equal  calm  and 
aplomb. 

Perhaps  it  was  well  for  the  future  career  of  the 
adventurous  young  fellow  that  he  fell  in  with  some 
French  traders,  who  were  traveling  with  many 
packhorses  well  laden,  and  who  designed  to  estab 
lish  themselves  with  their  goods  at  one  of  the 
Lower  Towns  of  the  Cherokees  ;  they  urged  that  he 
should  attach  himself  to  their  march,  whether  from 
a  humane  sense  of  diminishing  his  danger,  or  because 
of  the  industry  and  usefulness  and  ever  ready  proffer 
of  aid  in  the  frank,  bright,  amiable  boy,  who  showed 
a  quality  of  good  breeding  quite  beyond  their  custom, 
yet  not  unappreciated.  They  warned  him  that  it 
would  be  certain  death  to  him,  and  perhaps  to  his 
captive  relatives,  should  he  in  a  flimsy  disguise, 
which  he  had  fancied  adequate,  of  dyeing  his  hair 
a  singular  yellow  and  walking  with  a  limp,  which 
he  often  alertly  forgot,  venture  into  the  villages  of 
those  Cherokees  by  whom  he  had  been  so  well 
known,  and  against  whose  interest  he  had  been  cm- 
ployed  in  such  vigorous  and  bold  aggression.  The 
traders  showed  some  genuine  feeling  of  sympathy 
and  a  deep  indignation,  because  of  the  treachery  that 
had  resulted  in  the  massacre  of  the  garrison  of  Fort 


390          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

London,  —  although  the   English  were  always  the 
sworn  foe  of  the  French.     The  leader  of  the  party, 
elderly,  of  commercial  instincts  rather  than  sylvan, 
albeit  a  dead  shot,  and  decorated  with  ear-rings,  had 
a  great  proclivity  toward  snuff  and  tears,  and  often 
indulged  in  both  as  a  luxury  when  Hamish  with  his 
simple  art  sought  to  portray  the  characters  of  the 
tragedy  of  the  siege;  and  as  the  Frenchman  heard  of 
Fifine  and  Odalie,  and  Stuart  and  Demere,  and  all 
their  sufferings  and  courage  and  devices  of  despair 
—  "  Quelle  bar  bar  ie  !  "    he  would   burst  forth,  and 
Hamish  would  greet  the  phrase  with  a  boyish  delight 
of  remembrance.     Two  or  three  of  the  party  made 
an    incursion    into    Chote   when    they    reached    its 
neighborhood,  and  returned  with  the  news  that  the 
ransom  of  such  of  the  garrison  as  were  there  had 
taken  place,  and  they   had   been   delivered  to  the 
commandant  of   Fort    Prince   George,  but   certain 
others  had  been  removed  to  Huwhasee  Town  and 
among  them  were  the  French  squaw,  the  pappoose, 
and    the    Scotchman.      In   his    simplicity    Hamish 
believed  them,  although  Monsieur  Galette  sat  late, 
with  his  delicate  sentiments,  over  the  camp-fire  that 
night,  and  stared  at  it  with  red  eyes,  often  suffused 
with  tears,  and  took  snuff  after  his  slovenly  fashion 
until  he  acquired  the  aspect  of  a  blackened  pointed 
muzzle,  and  looked  in  his  elevated  susceptibility  like 
some  queer  unclassified  baboon. 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          391 

But  at  Huwhasee  Town  Hamish  heard  naught 
of  those  his  memory  cherished.  He  was  greatly 
amazed  at  the  courage  with  which  Monsieur  Galette 
urged  upon  the  head-men  that  some  measures 
should  be  taken  to  induce  Oconostota  to  remove 
that  fence,  of  which  they  had  heard  at  Chote, 
which  had  been  built  of  the  bones  of  the  massacred 
garrison,  and  give  them  burial  from  out  the 
affronted  gaze  of  Christian  people.  This  was  not 
pleasing,  he  said,  not  even  to  the  French.  He 
was  evidently  growing  old  and  his  heart  was 
softening  ! 

Lured  by  a  vague  rumor  expressed  among  the 
party  that  those  he  sought  had  been  removed  to 
a  remote  Indian  town  on  the  Tsullakee  River, 
Hamish  broke  away  from  Monsieur  Galette,  de 
spite  all  remonstrances,  to  seek  those  he  loved  in 
the  further  west  —  if  slaves,  as  Monsieur  Galette 
suggested,  he  would  rather  share  their  slavery  than 
without  them  enjoy  the  freedom  of  the  king.  And, 
constrained  to  receive  two  snuffy  kisses  on  either 
cheek,  he  left  Monsieur  Galette  shedding  his  fre 
quent  tears  to  mix  with  the  snuff  on  his  pointed 
muzzle. 

And  so  in  company  with  a  French  hunter  in  a 
canoe,  Hamish  went  down  the  long  reaches  of  the 
Tsullakee  River,  coming  after  many  days  to  their 
destination,  to  find  only  disappointment  and  a 


392          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

gnawing  doubt,  and  a  strange,  palsying  numb 
ness  of  despair.  For  the  French  traders  here, 
reading  Monsieur  Galette's  letter,  looked  at  one 
another  with  grave  faces  and  collogued  together, 
and  finally  became  of  the  opinion  that  the  members 
of  the  family  he  sought  were  somewhere  —  oh,  far 
away !  —  in  the  country  where  now  dwelt  the  ex 
patriated  Shawnees,  and  that  region,  so  great  an 
Indian  traveler  as  he  was  must  know  was  inacces 
sible  now  in  the  winter  season.  It  would  be  well 
for  him  to  dismiss  the  matter  from  his  mind,  and 
stay  with  them  for  the  present ;  he  could  engage 
in  the  fur  trade;  his  society  would  be  appreciated. 
With  the  well-meaning  French  flattery  they  pro 
tested  that  he  §poke  the  French  language  so  well  — 
they  made  him  upon  his  proficiency  their  felicita 
tions.  Poor  Hamish  ought  to  have  known  from 
this  statement  what  value  to  attach  to  what  they  said 
otherwise,  conscious  as  he  was  how  his  verbs  and 
pronouns  disagreed,  and  dislocated  the  sense  of  his 
remarks,  and  popped  up  and  down  out  of  place, 
like  a  lot  of  puppets  on  a  disorganized  system  of 
wires.  These  traders  were  not  snuffy  nor  lachry 
mose;  they  were  of  a  gay  disposition  and  also  wore 
ear-rings  —  but  they  all  looked  sorrowfully  at  him 
when  he  left  them,  and  he  thought  one  was  minded 
to  disclose  something  withheld. 

And  so  down  and  down  the  Tsullakee  River  he 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          393 

went,  and  after  the  junction  of  the  great  tributary 
with  the  Ohio,  he  plied  his  paddle  against  the 
strong  current  and  with  the  French  hunter  came 
into  the  placid  waters  of  the  beautiful  Sewanee,  or 
Cumberland,  flouted  by  the  north  wind,  his  way 
winding  for  many  miles  in  densest  wintry  solitudes. 
For  this  was  the  great  hunting-ground  of  the  Chero 
kee  nation  and  absolutely  without  population.  His 
adventures  were  few  and  slight  until  he  fell  in  with 
Daniel  Boon,  camping  that  year  near  the  head  waters 
of  the  Sewanee,  who  listened  to  his  story  with  grave 
concern  and  a  sane  and  effective  sympathy.  He, 
too,  advised  the  cessation  of  these  ceaseless  wander 
ings,  but  he  thought  Stuart's  letter  evasive,  some 
how,  and  counseled  the  boy  to  write  to  him  once 
more,  detailing  these  long  searches  and  their  futility. 
Hamish  had  always  realized  that  Stuart's  sentiments, 
although  by  no  means  shallow,  for  he  was  warmly 
attached  to  his  friends,  were  simple,  direct,  devoid 
of  the  subtlety  that  sometimes  characterized  his 
mental  processes.  Life  to  him  was  precious,  a 
privilege,  and  its  environment  the  mere  incident. 
He  now  replied  that  he  had  not  dared  divulge 
all  the  truth  while  Hamish  MacLeod  was  in  the 
enfeebled  condition  that  follows  brain-fever,  and 
had  been  loath,  too,  to  rob  him  of  hope,  only  that 
he  might  forlornly  mourn  his  nearest  and  dearest. 
But  since  the  fact  must  needs  be  revealed  he  could 


394          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Lou  don 

yet  say  their  sorrows  were  brief.  In  that  drear  dawn 
on  the  plains  of  Taliquo  the  mother  and  child  were 
killed  in  the  same  volley  of  musketry,  and  after 
ward,  as  he  ordered  from  time  to  time  the  ranks  to 
close  up,  he  saw  Sandy,  who  had  been  fighting  in 
line  with  the  troops,  lying  on  the  ground,  quite 
dead.  "You  may  be  sure  of  this,"  Stuart  added; 
"I  took  especial  note  of  their  fate,  having  from  the 
first  cared  much  for  them  all." 

The  terrible  certainty  wrought  a  radical  change 
in  Hamish.  From  the  moment  he  seemed,  instead 
of  the  wild,  impulsive,  affectionate  boy,  a  stern  re 
served  man.  In  the  following  year  he  enlisted  in  a 
provincial  regiment  mustered  to  join  the  British 
regulars  sent  again  by  General  Am  hers  t  to  the 
relief  of  the  Carolina  frontier ;  for  the  difficulties 
in  Canada  being  set  at  rest,  troops  could  be  put 
in  the  field  in  the  south,  and  vengeance  for  the 
tragedy  of  Fort  Loudon  became  a  menace  to  the 
Cherokees,  who  had  grown  arrogant  and  aggressive, 
stimulated  to  further  cruelties  by  their  triumphs  and 
immunity.  Nevertheless,  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  went 
forth  to  meet  the  invaders,  and  earnestly  attempted 
to  negotiate  a  treaty.  It  was  well  understood  now, 
however,  that  he  was  in  no  sense  a  representative 
man  of  his  nation,  and  his  mission  failed.  Lieu 
tenant-Colonel  James  Grant,  on  whom  Colonel 
Montgomery's  command  had  now  devolved,  at  the 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          395 

head  of  this  little  army  of  British  regulars  and  pro 
vincials,  preceded  by  a  vanguard  of  ninety  Indian 
allies  and  thirty  white  settlers,  painted  and  dressed 
like  Indians,  under  command  of  Captain  Quentin 
Kennedy,  —  in  all  about  twenty-six  hundred  men, 
— continued  to  advance  into  the  Cherokee  country. 
At  Etchoee,  the  scene  of  the  final  battle  of  Colonel 
Montgomery's  campaign  in  the  previous  year,  they 
encountered  the  Cherokees  in  their  whole  force  — 
the  united  warriors  of  all  the  towns.  A  furious  battle 
ensued,  both  sides  fighting  with  prodigies  of  valor 
and  persistence,  that  resulted  in  breaking  forever 
the  power  of  the  Cherokee  nation.  Three  hours 
the  rage  of  the  fight  lasted,  and  then  the  troops, 
pushing  forward  into  the  country,  burned  and  slew 
on  every  side,  wasting  the  growing  crops  all  over  the 
face  of  the  land,  and  driving  the  inhabitants  from 
the  embers  of  their  towns  to  the  refuge  of  caves  and 
dens  of  wild  beasts  in  the  mountains.  They  stayed 
not  their  hand  till  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  came  again,  now 
to  humbly  sue  for  peace  and  for  the  preservation  of 
such  poor  remnant  as  was  left  of  his  people. 

After  this  the  colonists  came  more  rapidly  into 
the  region.  A  settlement  sprang  up  at  Watauga, 
the  site  of  one  of  Hamish's  old  camps  as  he  had 
journeyed  on  his  fruitless  search  for  those  who  had 
made  his  home  and  the  wilderness  a  sort  of  paradise. 
But  the  place,  far  away  from  Loudon  though  it  was, 


396          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

seemed  sad  to  him.  The  austere  range  of  moun 
tain  domes  on  the  eastern  horizon  looked  down  on 
him  with  suggestions  which  they  imparted  to  none 
others  who  beheld  them.  He  and  they  had  con 
fidences  and  a  drear  interchange  of  memories  and  a 
knowledge  of  a  past  that  broke  the  heart  already  of 
the  future.  He  was  glad  to  look  upon  them  no 
more!  His  mind  had  turned  often  to  the  trivial 
scenes,  the  happier  times,  when,  unbereaved  of 
hope,  he  had  hunted  with  the  Frenchman  on  the 
banks  of  the  beautiful  Sewanee  River.  And  he 
welcomed  the  project  of  a  number  of  the  pioneers 
to  carry  their  settlement  on  to  the  region  of  the 
French  Salt  Lick,  which  other  hunters  had  already 
rendered  famous,  and  with  a  few  of  these  he  made 
his  way  thither  by  land  while  the  rest  traveled  by 
water,  the  way  of  his  old  journey  in  search  of  his  lost 
happiness.  And  here  he  lived  and  passed  his  days. 
He  heard  from  Stuart  from  time  to  time  after 
ward,  but  not  always  with  pleasure.  It  is  true  that 
it  afforded  him  a  sentiment  of  deep  gratification  to 
learn  that  the  Assembly  of  South  Carolina  had 
given  Stuart  a  vote  of  thanks  for  his  "  courage,  good 
conduct  and  long  perseverance  at  Fort  Loudon," 
with  a  testimonial  of  fifteen  hundred  pounds  cur 
rency,  and  earnestly  recommended  him  to  the  royal 
governor  for  a  position  of  honor  and  profit  in  the 
service  of  the  province  ;  the  office  of  Superintendent 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon          397 

of  Indian  Affairs  for  the  South  having  been  created, 
Stuart's  appointment  thereto  by  the  Crown  was 
received  with  the  liveliest  public  satisfaction,  it  being 
a  position  that  he  was  pronounced  in  every  way 
qualified  to  fill.16  For  some  years  this  satisfaction 
continued,  failing  only  when,  in  the  growing  differ 
ences  between  the  colonists  and  Great  Britain,  Stuart, 
wholly  devoted  to  the  royal  cause,  conceived  him 
self  under  obligations  to  carry  out  the  instructions 
which  the  British  War  Department  sent  to  him  and 
the  four  royal  governors  of  the  southern  provinces 
to  use  every  endeavor  to  continue  the  Indians  in 
their  adherence  to  the  British  standard  as  allies 
against  all  its  enemies ;  even  concocting  a  plan  with 
General  Gage,  Governor  Tonyn,  Lord  William 
Campbell,  and  other  royalists,  —  which  plan  happily 
failed, —  to  land  a  British  army  on  the  western  coast 
of  Florida,  whence,  joined  by  tories  and  Indians,  the 
united  force  should  fall  upon  the  western  frontiers 
of  Carolina  at  the  moment  of  attack  on  the  eastern 
coast  by  a  British  fleet,  in  the  hope  that  the  prov 
ince  thus  surrounded  would  be  obliged  to  sue  the 
royal  government  for  peace. 

Hamish  had  had  some  opportunity  at  Fort  Lou 
don  to  observe  the  tenacity  with  which  Stuart  at  all 
hazards  adhered  to  his  "  instructions  and  the  interest 
of  the  government,"  but  in  this  crisis  it  ceased  to 
appear  in  the  guise  of  duty.  In  such  a  time  it 


398          The  Story  of  Old  Fort  London 

seemed  to  Hamish  an  independent,  enlightened 
judgment  partook  of  the  values  of  a  pious  patriot 
ism.  A  permanent  breach  in  their  friendship  was 
made  when  Stuart  wrote  to  Hamish  to  call  his 
attention  to  the  fact  that  the  MacDonalds  of  Kings- 
burgh  and  the  MacLeods  and  other  leal  Scotch 
hearts  in  the  southern  provinces  were  fighting  under 
the  royal  banner.  Hamish  replied  succinctly  that 
"  on  whatever  side  the  MacLeods  fought,  with  what 
ever  result,  be  sure  the  thing  would  be  well  done." 
As  if  to  illustrate  the  fact,  he  himself  some  time 
afterward  set  forth  with  the  "  mountain  men "  to 
march  against  the  royalists  under  Ferguson,  and  was 
among  the  victors  in  the  battle  of  King's  Mountain. 
In  the  earlier  times  of  the  settlement  of  the  State, 
fraught  with  troubles  with  the  Indians,  who,  more 
timorous  than  formerly,  were  yet  more  skulking, 
Hamish  was  wont  to  take  with  hearty  good-will  to 
the  rifle,  the  knife,  the  pistol,  and  the  firebrand. 
He  was  with  Sevier  on  more  than  one  of  those 
furious  forays,  when  vengeance  nerved  the  hand 
and  hardened  the  heart,  for  many  of  the  pioneers 
avenged  the  slain  of  their  own  household.  But  as 
he  grew  old,  the  affinity  of  his  hand  for  the  trigger 
slackened,  and  he  liked  only  the  blaze  of  the  benig 
nant  fireside ;  sometimes  he  would  laugh  and  shake 
his  gray  head  and  declare  that  he  reminded  him 
self  of  Monsieur  Galette,  with  his  theories  of  sweet 


The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon         399 

peace  in  that  fierce  land,  and  his  soft  heart  and 
his  sinewy  old  hand  that  could  send  a  bullet  so 
straight  from  the  bore  of  his  flintlock  rifle.  And  so 
great  a  favorite  did  Monsieur  Galette  become  in 
Hamish's  fireside  stories,  so  often  clamored  for,  that 
he  would  ask  his  grandchildren,  clustering  about 
him,  if  they  would  like  him  better  with  a  muzzle  of 
snufF  and  a  pair  of  ear-rings  and  a  tear-discoursing 
eye,  and  declare  that  he  must  take  measures  to 
secure  these  embellishments. 

And  so,  gradually,  by  slow  degrees,  he  was  led  on 
to  talk  of  the  past,  —  of  the  beautiful  Carolina  girl 
who  had  been  his  brother's  wife,  of  the  quaint 
babble  of  Fifine,  of  Stuart  and  Demere,  of  Corporal 
O'Flynn,  and  the  big  drum-major,  and  the  queer 
old  African  cook,  and  the  cat  that  had  been  so 
cherished  — but  he  never,  never  ventured  a  word 
of  Sandy,  to  the  last  day  of  his  life ;  Sandy  !  —  for 
whom  he  had  had  almost  a  filial  veneration  blended 
with  the  admiring  applausive  affection  of  the  younger 
brother  for  the  elder. 

When  he  had  grown  very  old  —  for  he  died 
only  in  1813 — he  had  a  beneficent  illusion  that 
might  come  but  to  one  standing,  as  could  be  said, 
on  the  borderland  of  the  two  worlds.  It  came  in 
dreams,  such  perhaps  as  old  men  often  dream,  but 
his  experiences  made  it  the  tenderer.  Sometimes  in 
the  golden  afternoon  of  summer,  as  he  sat  in  placid 


400         The  Story  of  Old  Fort  Loudon 

sleep,  with  his  long,  white  hair  falling  about  his 
shoulders,  one  of  his  wrinkled,  veinous  hands 
lying  on  the  arm  of  his  chair  would  tremble  sud 
denly  and  contract  with  a  strong  grasp,  and  he 
would  look  up,  at  naught,  with  a  face  of  such  joyous 
recognition  and  tender  appeal,  that  the  children, 
playing  about,  would  pause  in  their  mirth  and  ask, 
with  awe,  what  had  he  seen.  And  it  seemed  that 
he  had  felt  his  hand  caught  with  a  certain  playful 
clasp  such  as  years  ago — more  than  half  a  century 
—  Odalie  was  wont  to  give  it,  when  she  had  been 
waiting  for  him  long,  and  would  wait  no  longer. 
And  looking  up,  he  could  see  her  standing  there, 
waiting  still,  smiling  serenely,  joyously  as  of  yore ; 
and  so  she  would  stand  till  the  dream  vanished  in 
the  reality  of  the  children  clustering  around  his 
knees,  besieging  him  once  more  for  the  story  of 
Old  Fort  Loudon. 


NOTES 

1  Page  8.     In  addition  to  luring  an  enemy  within  shot  by  the 
mimicry  of  the  voice  of  bird  or  beast  the  Indians'  consummate  art 
of  ambuscade  enabled  them  to  imitate  the  footprints  of  game  by 
affixing  the  hoofs  of  deer  or  buffalo  or  the  paws  of  bear  to  their 
own  feet  and  hands,   and  thus  duplicate  the  winding  progress  of 
these  animals  for  miles  with  such  skill  as  to  deceive  not  merely 
the  white  settlers,  new  to  the  country,  but  Indian  enemies  of  other 
tribes,  expert  woodmen  like  themselves. 

2  Page  1 8.      The  name  of  this  famous  town  is  variously  given. 
Adair  spells  it  as  Choate.      Bancroft  inclines  to  Chotee.      Bartram 
has  it  as  Chote-Great.      Some  of  the  old  maps  show  it  as  Chotte. 
Modern  historians  of  Tennessee,    Hayward,  J.  G.  M.   Ramsey, 
Putnam,  and  others  make  it  Chota,  but  most  of  the  earlier  writers 
concerning  this  region  adopt  the  French  rendering  and  call  it  Chote  ; 
Hewatt,  however,  David  Ramsey,  and  others  use  the  accent  grave, 
Chote.     This  town,  seldom  alluded  to  without  the  phrase  "old 
town"  or  "beloved  town,"  to  distinguish  it  from  another  Indian 
village  of  the  same  name  among  the  Lower  Towns,  was  a  veritable 
"city   of  refuge,"    and    the  only  one   of  the   Cherokee   nation. 
A  murderer,  even  if  a  white  man   and    the   victim  a  Cherokee, 
might    live    for    years    here    secure   from   vengeance.       Although 
there  is  an  instance  known  of  a  malefactor,  who  sought  an  asylum 
here  and  was  prevented   from  landing,    being  held   down  in  the 
Tennessee  River  until  drowned,  still  the  rule  was  inviolable  that  if 
the  refugee  could  but  gain  a  footing  on  the  ever-sacred  soil,  he  was 
as  safe  as  if  clinging  to  the  horns  of  an  altar.      This  fact  contrib 
uted,  with  other  confirmatory  circumstances  of  usage  and  tradition, 

401 


402  Notes 

to  continue  the  speculations  touching  the  identity  of  the  American 
Indians  with  the  lost  tribes  of  Israel.  Humboldt  says  that  from 
the  most  remote  times  of  the  Missions  the  opinion  has  been  enter 
tained  that  the  languages  of  the  American  Indians  and  the  Hebrew 
display  extraordinary  analogies.  He  ascribes  this  fact  to  the  posi 
tion  of  the  personal  and  possessive  pronouns  at  the  end  of  the 
nouns  and  verbs,  and  the  numerous  tenses  of  the  latter,  a  charac 
teristic  of  both  the  Indian  and  Hebrew  tongues  which  naturally 
struck  the  attention  of  the  monks.  An  analogy,  however,  does  not 
go  far  to  prove  an  identity  of  origin.  He  refers  to  Adair  as  among 
travelers  "somewhat  credulous  who  have  heard  the  strains  of  the 
Hebrew  Hallelujah  among  the  Chickasaws  and  Choctaws  of  North 
America," — and  he  might  have  added  the  Cherokees  also.  James 
Adair,  however,  could  hardly  be  called  a  traveler.  He  published 
in  London  in  1775  the  results  of  his  observation  during  a  residence 
of  forty  years  as  a  trader  among  the  Chickasaws  and  neighboring 
tribes.  He  adduces  many  analogies  of  their  languages  with  the 
Hebrew,  and  calls  attention  to  many  customs  for  which  he  seeks 
to  discern  precedent  in  the  Mosaic  dispensation.  How  much  he 
had  read  of  previous  speculations  it  is  impossible  to  say.  He  pro 
tests  that  he  is  but  a  trader  and  not  "a  skillful  Hebraist,"  by  his 
vocation  obliged  to  write  far  from  all  libraries,  literary  associations, 
and  conversation  with  the  learned,  compelled  even  to  keep  his  papers 
secret  from  the  observation  of  the  Indians,  always  very  jealous  of 
the  enigmatical  "black  marks"  of  the  traders'  correspondence,  but 
he  quotes  largely  from  many  writers  both  English  and  foreign  — 
the  Reverend  Mr.  Thorowgood,  Don  Antonio  de  Ulloa,  Acosta, 
Benzo,  etc.,  and  shows  considerable  aptness  of  logic  in  adapting 
his  theories  to  his  investigations  into  the  structure  of  the  Indian 
languages.  Such  nice  verbal  distinctions,  such  order  and  symme 
try,  such  a  train  of  subtle  and  exact  religious  terms,  he  argues, 
could  not  be  invented  by  a  people  so  ignorant  and  illiterate  as  the 
modern  Indian,  and  contends  that  they  obviously  bear  all  the  dis 
tinctive  marks  of  a  language  of  culture.  He  further  declares  that 
one  of  the  Chickasaw  prophets,  the  Loacbe,  assmred  him  that  they 


Notes  403 

had  once  had  an  "old  beloved  speech,"  which  in  the  course  of 
time  and  national  degeneration  they  had  lost.  In  this  connection, 
but  entirely  apart  from  all  Hebraic  analogies,  one  is  moved  to 
wonder  if  there  were  also  among  them  a  reminiscence  of  an  "  old 
beloved  character,"  and  if  the  extraordinary  invention  of  the 
Cherokee  character  of  the  "syllabic  alphabet"  by  the  Indian, 
Guest,  early  in  the  present  century,  partly  partakes  of  the  nature 
of  tradition. 

3  Page  22.      The   high  value   which   the  French   government 
placed   on  the   services   of  these   allies   may  be    inferred   from  a 
remark  which  has  come  down  from  a  council  of  state,  in  reference 
to  their  conduct  in  this  battle  :   "  Quoique  je  n*  approuve  pas  quy  on 
mange  les  morts,  cependant  il  ne  faut  pas  quereller  avec  ces  bonne tes 
gens  pour  des  bagatelles. '  * 

4  Page   38.     Among  others  bearing  witness   to   these  strange 
relics,    Timothy  Flint  says,  in  his  History  and  Geography  of  the 
Mississippi  Valley  :   "In  this  state    [Tennessee]   burying  grounds 
have  been  found  where  the  skeletons  seem  all  to  have  been  pigmies. 
The  graves  in  which  the  bodies  were  deposited  are  seldom  more 
than  two  feet  or  two  feet  and  a  half  in  length.      To  obviate  the 
objection  that  these  are  all  the  bodies  of  children,  it  is  affirmed 
that  the  skulls  are  found  to  have  possessed  the  denies  sapientitf, 
and  must  have   belonged   to  persons  of  mature  age.       The  two 
bodies  that  were  found  in  the  vast  limestone  cavern  in  Tennessee, 
one  of  which  I  saw  at  Lexington,  were  neither  of  them  more  than 
four  feet  high  ;    the  hair  seemed  to  have  been  sandy,   or  inclin 
ing  to  yellow.      It  is  well  known  that  nothing  is  so  uniform  in  the 
present  Indian  as  his  lank,  black  hair.      From  the  pains  taken  to 
preserve  the  bodies,  and  the  great  labor  of  making  the  funeral  robes 
in  which  they  were  folded,   they  must  have  been   of  the   '  blood 
royal*  or  personages  of  consideration  in  their  day."      (Hay ward, 
in  his  quaint  and   rare   Natural  and  Aboriginal  History  of  Ten 
nessee,    referring    to    the  curious  method    of  interment,  in  a  cop 
peras  cave,  of  two  mummies,  both  of  full  size,  however,  arrayed 
in  fabrics  of  great  beauty,  evincing  much  mechanical  skill  in  manu- 


404  Notes 

facture,  also  mentions  the  hair  on  the  heads  of  both  as  long,  and  of 
a  yellow  cast  and  a  fine  texture.)  Webber,  in  his  Romance  of 
Natural  History,  gives  the  size  of  the  diminutive  sarcophagi  of  the 
supposed  pygmies  found  in  Tennessee  as  three  feet  in  length  by 
eighteen  inches  in  depth.  Hayward  also  mentions  the  pygmy 
dwellers  of  Tennessee,  and  another  writer  still,  describing  one  of 
these  singular  graveyards  of  the  "little  people,"  states  that  the 
bones  were  strong  and  well  formed,  and  that  one  of  the  skeletons 
had  about  its  neck  ninety-four  pearls.  The  painfully  prosaic 
hypothesis  of  certain  craniologists  that  such  relics  were  only  those 
of  children  is,  of  course,  rejected  by  any  person  possessed  of  the 
resources  of  imagination. 

5  Page  40.      This  name  is  also  given  in  one  or  two  instances 
as   Dejean,    and   several   dates   both  earlier   and  later  have   been 
assigned   to   the   disastrous    visit  to   Chote  to  which   reference  is 
here  made. 

6  Page  82.      Washington  readily  recognized  the  futility  of  the 
cumbrous  regular  military  methods  in  a  rough,  unsettled  country. 
On  the  Forbes  expedition,  to  counteract  the  French  and  their  Indian 
allies,  Washington  continually  sent  out  small  parties  of  the  Cherokees 
under  his  command.      "Small  parties  of  Indians,"  said  he,  "will 
more  effectually  harass  the  enemy  by  keeping  them  under  continual 
alarms  than  any  parties  of  white  men  can  do."      However,  "with 
all  his  efforts,"  says   Irving,    "he  was   never  able  to  make   the 
officers  of  the  regular  army  appreciate  the  importance  of  Indian 
allies  in  these  campaigns  in  the  wilderness."     But  the  fact  has  been 
taught   elsewhere,    both  earlier  and  later  than  Washington's  day. 
General  Gordon,  in  his  journal,   says  of  the  Soudan:    "A  heavy 
lumbering  column  is  nowhere  in  this  land.      Parties   of  forty   or 
sixty  men  moving  swiftly  about  will  do  more  than  any  column. 
Native  allies,  above  all  things,  at  whatever  cost.      It  is  the  country 
of  the  irregular,  not  of  the  regular.      I  can  say  I  owe  the  defeats  in 
this  country  to  having  artillery  with  me,  which  delayed  me  much, 
and  it  was   the  artillery  with   Hicks   which   in   my   opinion   did 
for  him."      And  as  if  he  himself  merely  turned  back  a  leaf  instead 


Notes  405 

of  the  pages  of  centuries,  he  here  inserts  an  extract  from  Herodotus: 
"  Cambyses  marched  against  the  Ethiopians  without  making  any 
provision  for  the  subsistence  of  his  army  or  once  considering  that 
he  was  going  to  carry  his  arms  to  the  remotest  parts  of  the  world,  but 
as  a  madman  .  .  .  before  the  army  had  passed  over  a  fifth  of  the 
way  all  the  provisions  were  exhausted,  and  the  beasts  of  burden 
were  eaten.  .  .  .  Now  if  Cambyses  had  then  led  his  army  back 
he  would  have  proved  himself  a  wise  man.  He,  however,  went 
on  ...  the  report  was  that  heaps  of  sand  covered  them  over, 
and  they  disappeared."  Gordon  comments,  "Hicks'  army  disap 
peared.  The  expedition  was  made  into  these  lands." 

7  Page   137.      This  pride  flourished  probably  too  far   on  the 
frontier  to  be  deteriorated  by  the  knowledge  of  the  gradual  decline 
in  the  popularity  of  the  periwig  then  in  progress,  for  only  a  few 
years  later  the  wig-makers  of  London  found  it  necessary  to  petition 
the  king,  setting  forth  their  distresses  occasioned  by  the  perversity 
of  the  men  of  his  realm  in  persisting  in  wearing  their  own  hair. 
The  most  definite  outcome  of  this  proceeding  was  the  sprightly 
travesty  of  the  petition,  appearing  in  the  Gentleman' 's  Magazine  on 
behalf  of  the  carpenters,  entreating  his  majesty  to  wear  a  wooden 
leg  himself,  and  to  require  this  of  all  his  subjects,  since  otherwise 
the  advent  of  peace  bade  fair  to  ruin  the  joiner's  trade  in  wooden 
legs. 

8  Page  148.      The  Duke  of  Cumberland  has  never  been  con 
sidered  what  is  prettily  called  a  "  lovely  character."     His  tempera 
ment,  which  would  not  even  brook  that  certain  gentlemen,  whom  he 
denominated  with  a  profane  adjective  "old  women,"  should  talk 
to  him  "about  humanity"   (and  it  may  be  said  in  passing  that 
these  hopeful  "old  women"  were  most  obviously  condemned  to 
disappointment  at  least),  his  rigid  discipline  of  his  own  troops,  and 
his  unparalleled  brutality  to  the  enemy,  leave  the  devotion  exhibited 
for  him  by  his  soldiers  to  be  accounted  for  only  by  the  admiration 
which  they  felt  for  his  personal  courage,   which  was  very  great, 
and  of  which  Walpole  tells  a  good  story  about  this  time,  —  of 
course  before  the  days  of  anaesthetics  :      "The  Duke  of  Cumber- 


406  Notes 

land  is  quite  recovered  after  an  incision  of  many  inches  into  his 
knee.  Ranby  [the  surgeon]  did  not  dare  to  propose  that  a  hero 
should  be  tied,  but  was  frightened  out  of  his  senses  when  the  hero 
would  hold  the  candle  himself,  which  none  of  his  generals  could 
bear  to  do  :  in  the  middle  of  the  operation  the  Duke  said  '  Hold  ! ' 
Ranby  said,  'For  God's  sake,  Sir,  let  me  proceed  now  —  it  will 
be  worse  to  renew  it.'  The  Duke  repeated,  '  I  say,  hold  ! '  and 
then  calmly  bade  them  give  Ranby  a  clean  waistcoat  and  cap  ;  *  for,' 
said  he,  'the  poor  man  has  sweated  through  these.'  It  was  true  ; 
but  the  Duke  did  not  utter  a  groan." 

9  Page  1 68.      It  is  with  a  renewal  of  confidence  in  the  better 
aspects  of  human  nature,  and  the  genuineness  of  such  sanctions  as 
control  civilized  war  that  we  realize  that  the  French  and  English 
officers  encountering  dangers  so  far  transcending  legitimate  perils  as 
those  pervading  Indian  fighting  manifested  individually,  now  and 
again,  a  true  and  soldierly  sympathy  with  one  another,  and  sought 
to  protect  the  helpless  in  their  power,  often  liberating  those  ex 
posed  to   torture  at    the    hands   of  their  savage   allies.       For  the 
methods  of  the  Indians  were  by  no  means  ameliorated  by  associ 
ation  with  their  civilized   comrades,   and   they  could   scarcely  be 
held  subject  to  any  control.     Washington  himself,  whose  capacity 
in  authority  amounted  to  a  special  genius,  even  when  only  a  young 
provincial  officer,  could  not  restrain  his  Indian  allies  from  scalping 
the  slain,  and  in  several  instances  it  required  his  utmost  exertions 
to  prevent  a  like  fate  from  befalling  his  own  living  prisoners. 

10  Page  217.       Governor  Lyttleton  on  the   request  of  Atta- 
Kulla-Kulla  released  Oconostota,  Fiftoe,  the  chief  warrior  of  Keo- 
wee  Town,   and  the  head  warrior  of  Estatoe,  who  the  next  day 
surrendered  two  other  Indians  to  be  held  as  substitutes.      Although 
it  has  been  generally  said  that  there  were  twenty-two  hostages,  only 
twenty-one  seem  to  have  been  detained,  and  it  is  therefore  possible 
that  Oconostota  was  liberated  without  exchange,  on  account  of  his 
position  and  influence  in  the  tribe,   being   always   known   as   the 
"Great  Warrior."      The  names  of  the  hostages   detained  are  as 
follows :      Chenohe,   Ousanatanah,   Tallichama,    Tallitahe,   Quar- 


Notes  407 

rasatahe,  Connasaratah,  Kataetoi,  Otassite  of  Watogo,  Ousanoletah 
of  Jore,  Kataletah  of  Cowetche,  Chisquatalone,  Skiagusta  of  Sticoe, 
Tanaesto,  Wohatche,  Wyejah,  Oucachistanah,  Nicolche,  Tony, 
Toatiahoi,  Shallisloske,  and  Chistie. 

11  Page    236.      Bancroft   says  this  detached    force    comprised 
six  hundred  Highlanders  and  six  hundred  Royal  Americans.     Adair 
says  it  consisted  of  twelve  hundred  Highlanders.      Other  historians 
add  to  this  number  a  body  of  grenadiers.      Hewatt,  who  writes 
almost  contemporaneously,   publishing  in    1779,   and  who  was  a 
resident  of  Charlestown,  where  the   force   landed  and  whence  it 
departed,  states  that  it  consisted  of  a  battalion  of  Highlanders  and 
four  companies  of  the  Royal  Scots,  and  it  was  there  joined  by  a 
company  of  South  Carolina  Volunteers.      He  further  mentions  that 
upon  Colonel  Montgomery's  return  to  New  York  he  left  four  com 
panies  of  his  force  in  Charlestown,  upon  the  urgent  request  of  the 
governor  and  assembly,  to  aid  the  defense  of  the  Carolina  frontier, 
and  that  these  were  of  the  royal  regiment  under  the  command  of 
Major  Frederick  Hamilton.      The  Royal  Scots,  being  one  of  the 
oldest  and  most  celebrated  of  military  organizations,  has  the  peculiar 
claim  on  the  consideration  of  all  the  world,  that  having  been  the 
body-guard  of  King  Louis  XI.  of  France,  the  renowned  Scottish 
Archers,   it  must  surely  bear  on  the  ancient  and   illustrious  rolls 
the  ever-cherished  name  of  Quentin  Durward,  for  are  we  not  told 
that  the  venerable  commander  of  the  guard,  Lord  Crawford,  en 
tered  it  there  himself  ?     And  if  it  is  not  now  to  be  seen,  why  — 
so  much  the  worse  for  the  ancient  and  illustrious  rolls  ! 

12  Page  261.      The  personal  vanity  of  the  Cherokees  was  so 
great  that  after  discovering  the  functions  of  a  mirror  the  men  were 
never  without  one.      Even  in  their  most  unimpeded  war-trim  they 
carried  a  mirror  slung  over  one  shoulder  and  consulted  it  from  time 
to  time  with  pleasure  doubtless.      When  the  small-pox  broke  out 
among  them,  those  whose  appearance  had  suffered  from  that  disease 
could  not  endure  to  survive  their  disfigurement,  and  promptly  took 
their  own  lives,  although  suicides  were  buried  without  the  highly 
esteemed  honors  usually  paid  to  the  dead. 


408  Notes 

13  Page    366.      The   temperament   of  Atta-Kulla-Kulla  seems 
far  more  complex  than  the  simple  traits  attributed  usually  to  un 
trained  character.      Apart  from  his  savage  craft,  courage,  and  a  sort 
of  natural  eloquence  which  he  shared  with  his  tribe,  the  close  dis 
cernment  shown  in  some  of  his  speeches  still  extant,  his  magna 
nimity,  his  capacity  to  receive  and  assimilate  new  impressions,  his 
diplomatic  talents,  all  suggest  a  versatile  mind,  and  he  also  possessed 
a  caustic  wit  to  which  he  was  wont  to  give  rein  touching  the  oft- 
broken  promises  of  one  of  the  governors  of  South  Carolina,  from 
whom  it  is  related  he  had  received  many  letters  which  he  said  "were 
not  agreeable  to  the  old  beloved  speech."     He  kept  them  regularly 
piled  in  a  bundle  in  the  order  in  which  he  had  received  them,  and 
often  showed  them.      "  *  The  first,'  he  used  to  say,  'contained  a 
little  truth,'  and  he  would  devise  fantastic  excuses  for  the  failure  of 
the  rest  of  it,  urging  the  governor's  perplexing  rush  of  official  busi 
ness  which  had  occasioned  him  to  forget  his  strong  promises.     '  But 
count,'    said   he,    'the   lying  black  marks  of  this  one' — and  he 
would  descant  minutely  on  every  circumstance  of  it."      His  pa 
tience,  he  would  declare,  was  exhausted,  and  he  felt  that  the  letters 
were  "nothing  but  an  heap  of  broad  black  papers  and  ought  to  be 
burnt  in  the  old  year's  fire."      The  old  year's  fire  was  a  symbol  of 
departed  values,  the  new  year's  fire  being  kindled  with  great  cere 
mony  by    the    Cheera-taghe,   or   prophets,   "men    of  the   divine 
fire." 

14  Page  386.     It  is  pleasant  to  know  that  this  strong  friendship 
suffered  no  diminution  by  reason  of  time  and  distance.      Bartram 
relates  that  when  he  traveled  in  the  Cherokee  country  in   1773  he 
met  descending  the  heights  a  company  of  Indians  all  well  mounted 
on    horses.      "  I    observed   a    chief  at   the   head  of  the  caravan, 
and  as  they  came  up  I  turned  off  from  the  path  to  make  way  in 
token  of  respect,  which  compliment  was  accepted  and  gracefully 
and  magnanimously  returned,  for  his  highness,  with  a  gracious  and 
cheerful  smile,  came  up  to  me  and  clapping  his  hand  on  his  breast 
offered  it  to  me,  saying,  'I  am  Ata-Cul-Culla,'  and  heartily  shook 
hands  with  me,  and  asked  me  if  I  knew  it.      I  answered  that  the 


Notes  409 

good  spirit  who  goes  before  me  spoke  to  me  and  said  '  that  is  the 
great  Ata-Cul-Culla.'  "  The  chief  then  asked  him  if  he  came 
direct  from  Charlestown,  and  if  his  friend  John  Stuart  were  well. 
Mr.  Bartram  was  able  to  his  great  pleasure  to  reply  that  he  had 
seen  John  Stuart  very  recently,  and  that  he  was  well. 

15  Page   386.      French  emissaries  were  shortly  in  the  vicinity 
of  this  fort.      At  a  great  meeting  of  the  Cherokee  nation  the  inde 
fatigable  Louis  Latinac  struck   a  hatchet  into   a   log,  crying  out, 
"Who  will  take  up  this  for  the  king  of  France?"     Saloue,  the 
young  warrior  of  Estatoe,  instantly  laid  hold  of  it,  exclaiming,  "I 
am  for  war  !  "      And  in  indorsement  of  this  compact  many  toma 
hawks  were  brandished,  already  red  with  British  blood. 

16  Page  397.     As  an  interesting  example   of  the  appropriate 
and  successful  method  to  address  barbarous  peoples,  the  historian 
Hewatt  gives  entire  the  text  of  a  speech  to  several  tribes  of  In 
dians   which  Stuart,  in  his  capacity  of  superintendent  of  Indian 
affairs  for  the  South,  delivered  at  a  general  congress   at  Mobile, 
attended  by  Governor  Johnstone  and   many   British   officers   and 
soldiers.      It  is  strikingly  apt,   and  despite  the  figurative  language 
for  which  the  Indians  had  so  strong  a  preference,  it  is  direct  and 
simple,  bold  yet  conciliatory,   dignified  in  tone,  but  with  a  very 
engaging  air  of  extreme  candor,  and  it  may  be  that  Stuart's  influ 
ence  over  them  lay  chiefly  in  fair  and  impartial  measures  and  the 
faithful    performance    of  promises.      Among    the    writers  of  that 
date  he  is  rarely  mentioned  without  some  reference  to  his  mental 
ability,  which  seems  to  have  been  very  marked,  or  to  the  exact  and 
strict  fidelity  with  which  he  followed  the  letter  and  spirit  of  his 
instructions.      A  certain  fling,  however,  by  one  who  had  wanted 
the  office  to  which  Stuart  was  afterward  appointed  is  so  deft  a  bit 
of  character-drawing  in  few  words  that,  regardless  of  its  obvious 
spite,    it  is   worth   repeating, —  "a  haughty  person,    devoted   to 
parade,  and  a  proud  uniform." 


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